Berty vs Peachpub
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted chat & communication options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Berty
Peer-to-peer messaging app that works offline
VS
Peachpub
Secure Scuttlebutt pub with a web interface for pub management
| Feature | Berty | Peachpub |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Chat & Communication | Chat & Communication |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Language | TypeScript | |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 50 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 9,268 | — |
| First released | 2018 | 2023 |
| Replaces | WhatsApp, Signal | Facebook, Instagram |
Why pick each one
Choose Berty if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Mature project with 9.3k GitHub stars
- Written in TypeScript
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Choose Peachpub if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Tiny footprint — runs in 50 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Berty or Peachpub better?
Neither is universally better. Berty has the larger community, while Peachpub is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Berty and Peachpub free and open-source?
Yes. Berty is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Peachpub under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Berty and Peachpub with Docker?
Berty: check the project docs for container support. Peachpub: check the project docs for container support.