Cinny
Matrix & XMPPSimple, elegant and secure Matrix client
Replaces Slack, Discord
Best Lightweight Matrix & XMPP for self-hosting
The 18 best Lightweight matrix & xmpp you can self-host, ranked by community traction.
Converse.js
Matrix & XMPPWeb-based XMPP/Jabber chat client
Replaces Slack
FluffyChat
Matrix & XMPPCute, cross-platform Matrix messenger
Replaces WhatsApp, Telegram
Nheko
Matrix & XMPPDesktop Matrix client with native Qt interface
Replaces Slack, Discord
Dino
Matrix & XMPPModern XMPP chat client for the desktop
Replaces Skype, Slack
Conduit
Matrix & XMPPSimple, fast and reliable Matrix homeserver in Rust
Replaces Slack, Discord
ZNC
Matrix & XMPPAdvanced and flexible IRC bouncer
Replaces IRCCloud
gomuks
Matrix & XMPPTerminal-based Matrix client written in Go
Replaces Slack, Discord
Profanity
Matrix & XMPPConsole-based XMPP client inspired by irssi
Replaces Slack
Convos
Matrix & XMPPAlways-online web IRC client you can self-host
Replaces Slack, IRCCloud
JSXC
Matrix & XMPPJavaScript XMPP client for the browser
Replaces Slack
matrix-nio
Matrix & XMPPPython library for building Matrix clients and bots
Replaces Slack bot SDK
Continuwuity
Matrix & XMPPCommunity-maintained Rust Matrix homeserver
Replaces Slack, Discord
Construct
Matrix & XMPPHigh-performance Matrix homeserver written in C++
Replaces Slack, Discord
Matrix Authentication Service
Matrix & XMPPOAuth 2.0 and OpenID Connect provider for Matrix homeservers
Poezio
Matrix & XMPPConsole XMPP client modeled after IRC clients
Replaces Slack
Metronome IM
Matrix & XMPPLightweight, fork-based XMPP communication server
Replaces Slack, WhatsApp
go-sendxmpp
Matrix & XMPPCommand-line tool to send XMPP messages
Replaces Slack incoming webhooks
No apps match these filters.
At a glance
| App | Deploy effort | Difficulty | Min. RAM | License | ★ Stars |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cinny | Under-an-hour setup | Easy | 64 MB | AGPL-3.0 | 3,933 |
| Converse.js | Under-an-hour setup | Easy | 64 MB | MPL-2.0 | 3,298 |
| FluffyChat | Read-the-docs project | Easy | 64 MB | AGPL-3.0 | 3,207 |
| Nheko | Read-the-docs project | Easy | 256 MB | GPL-3.0 | 2,507 |
| Dino | Read-the-docs project | Easy | 128 MB | GPL-3.0 | 2,500 |
| Conduit | Under-an-hour setup | Easy | 128 MB | Apache-2.0 | 2,200 |
| ZNC | Under-an-hour setup | Medium | 64 MB | Apache-2.0 | 2,128 |
| gomuks | Read-the-docs project | Easy | 128 MB | AGPL-3.0 | 1,732 |
| Profanity | Read-the-docs project | Medium | 32 MB | GPL-3.0 | 1,546 |
| Convos | Under-an-hour setup | Easy | 256 MB | Artistic-2.0 | 1,196 |
Quick picks
- Most adopted: Cinny (3,933 GitHub stars).
- Lightest footprint: Profanity (from 32 MB RAM, against 256 MB for the heaviest here).
- Licensing: 5 of 18 use GPL-3.0; check the rest individually if you plan to modify and redistribute.
Every option here is open-source and self-hostable, tagged Lightweight within the matrix & xmpp category. Deploy effort is graded from published container recipes, not vendor claims — see the methodology.