WeechatvsZulip
Two self-hosted Chat projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| Weechat | Zulip | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 70/100 | 82/100 |
| Rank in category | #8 of 110 in Chat | #1 of 110 in Chat |
| GitHub stars | 3 417 | 26 134 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +24 | +191 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 12 | 6 |
| Latest release | v4.10.1 · 5 Sept 2026 | 12.3 · 21 Sept 2026 |
| Setup | Moderate | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | C | Python |
Which one should you pick?
Zulip scores 82/100 against 70/100 for Weechat, so it is the safer default.
Weechat ships more often: 12 stable releases in the past year, against 6 for Zulip.
Zulip is growing faster right now (+191 stars in 30 days).
Weechat details →Zulip details →All Chat projects →
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