Centrifugo vs Mailman3

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?
FeatureCentrifugoMailman3
CategoryChat & CommunicationChat & Communication
LicenseMITAGPL-3.0-or-later
LanguageGo
Setup difficultyMediumMedium
Min. RAM256 MB800 MB
Deploymentdocker, kubernetes, binarybare-metal
GitHub stars★ 10,590
First released20152023
ReplacesPusher, Firebase Realtime DatabaseGoogle Groups

Why pick each one

Choose Centrifugo if…

  • Handles many connections
  • Easy to integrate
Centrifugo details

Choose Mailman3 if…

  • Released under the AGPL-3.0-or-later license
Mailman3 details

Frequently asked questions

Is Centrifugo or Mailman3 better?

Neither is universally better. Centrifugo has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are Centrifugo and Mailman3 free and open-source?

Yes. Centrifugo is licensed under MIT and Mailman3 under AGPL-3.0-or-later. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Centrifugo and Mailman3 with Docker?

Centrifugo: yes. Mailman3: check the project docs for container support.

Related comparisons