# SimpleX Chat vs Zulip

> Two self-hosted [Chat projects](https://selfhost.directory/chat), compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.

| | SimpleX Chat | Zulip |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 74/100 | 82/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #4 of 110 in Chat | #1 of 110 in Chat |
| GitHub stars | 19 613 | 26 133 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | +143 | +190 ✓ |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 12 ✓ | 6 |
| Latest release | v7.0.4 · 3 Oct 2026 ✓ | 12.3 · 21 Sept 2026 |
| Setup | Moderate | Moderate ✓ |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | Haskell | Python |

## Which one should you pick?

Zulip scores 82/100 against 74/100 for SimpleX Chat, so it is the safer default.

SimpleX Chat ships more often: 12 stable releases in the past year, against 6 for Zulip.

## Details

- [SimpleX Chat](https://selfhost.directory/project/simplex-chat) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/simplex-chat.md)
- [Zulip](https://selfhost.directory/project/zulip) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/zulip.md)

## Related comparisons

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

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/simplex-chat-vs-zulip