Charybdis IRCd vs Quassel IRC
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted chat & communication options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Charybdis IRCd | Quassel IRC |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 7 · At risk | 57 · Fair |
| Status | Archived | Actively maintained |
| Category | Chat & Communication | Chat & Communication |
| License | GPL-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | C | C++ |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | docker, binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 230 | ★ 794 |
| First released | 2008 | 2008 |
| Replaces | Discord, Slack | Slack |
What are Charybdis IRCd and Quassel IRC?
Charybdis IRCd
Charybdis is an IRCv3-capable IRC server daemon descended from ratbox, designed to power large IRC networks. It has been used as the basis for several other IRC server projects and is fully self-hostable.
- IRCv3-capable IRC server
- Designed for large networks
- Basis for other IRC daemons
Quassel IRC
Quassel is a distributed IRC client built around a central core that stays connected and one or more clients that attach to it. The core acts as a permanent bouncer storing backlog for all devices.
- Always-on core bouncer
- Synced backlog across devices
- Qt desktop clients
- PostgreSQL or SQLite storage
Charybdis IRCd vs Quassel IRC: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: Charybdis IRCd's repository is archived and no longer developed, while Quassel IRC is actively maintained. Charybdis IRCd is written in C, while Quassel IRC is built with C++. Licensing differs — GPL-2.0 for Charybdis IRCd versus GPL-3.0 for Quassel IRC. Charybdis IRCd is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 128 MB for Quassel IRC. Quassel IRC has the considerably larger community, at 794 GitHub stars versus 230. Quassel IRC lists first-class Docker deployment; Charybdis IRCd does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Charybdis IRCd if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- Written in C
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Choose Quassel IRC if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in C++
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Charybdis IRCd or Quassel IRC better?
Neither is universally better. Quassel IRC has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Charybdis IRCd and Quassel IRC free and open-source?
Yes. Charybdis IRCd is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Quassel IRC under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Charybdis IRCd and Quassel IRC with Docker?
Charybdis IRCd: check the project docs for container support. Quassel IRC: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Charybdis IRCd or Quassel IRC?
Charybdis IRCd has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 128 MB for Quassel IRC. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.