# pretalx vs Rocket.Chat

> Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.

| | pretalx | Rocket.Chat |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 62/100 | 82/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #2 of 3 in Conference Management | #1 of 13 in Instant Messaging |
| GitHub stars | 954 | 46 349 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | +8 | +179 ✓ |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 7 | 36 ✓ |
| Latest release | v2026.2.1 · 8 Jul 2026 | 8.5.4 · 16 Oct 2026 ✓ |
| Setup | Advanced | Moderate ✓ |
| Official Docker image | No | Yes ✓ |
| License | Other | Other |
| Main language | Python | Typescript |

## Which one should you pick?

Rocket.Chat scores 82/100 against 62/100 for pretalx, so it is the safer default.

Rocket.Chat ships more often: 36 stable releases in the past year, against 7 for pretalx.

If you want the quickest setup, Rocket.Chat is easier to run; pretalx needs more configuration.

Rocket.Chat is growing faster right now (+179 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [pretalx](https://selfhost.directory/project/pretalx) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/pretalx.md)
- [Rocket.Chat](https://selfhost.directory/project/rocketchat) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/rocketchat.md)

## Related comparisons

- [Discourse vs Rocket.Chat](https://selfhost.directory/compare/discourse-vs-rocketchat)
- [Rocket.Chat vs Zulip](https://selfhost.directory/compare/rocketchat-vs-zulip)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/pretalx-vs-rocketchat