Berty vs Peer-calls
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
Peer-calls
Group peer to peer video calls for everyone
| Feature | Berty | Peer-calls |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Chat & Communication | Chat & Communication |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 50 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 9,268 | ★ 1,903 |
| First released | 2018 | 2024 |
| Replaces | WhatsApp, Signal | BigBlueButton, Skype, Zoom |
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 Peer-calls if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Active community (1.9k GitHub stars)
- Written in Go
Frequently asked questions
Is Berty or Peer-calls better?
Neither is universally better. Berty has the larger community, while Peer-calls is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Berty and Peer-calls free and open-source?
Yes. Berty is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Peer-calls under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Berty and Peer-calls with Docker?
Berty: check the project docs for container support. Peer-calls: check the project docs for container support.