Cinny vs Dendrite
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted matrix & xmpp options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Cinny | Dendrite |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 88 · Excellent | 15 · At risk |
| Status | Actively maintained | Archived |
| Category | Matrix & XMPP | Matrix & XMPP |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,903 | ★ 5,625 |
| First released | 2021 | 2017 |
| Replaces | Slack, Discord | Slack, Discord |
What are Cinny and Dendrite?
Cinny
Cinny is a Matrix client focused on a clean, simple and modern user interface. It can be self-hosted as a static web app to connect to any Matrix homeserver.
- Clean and minimal UI
- End-to-end encryption
- Static web app deployment
- Desktop builds available
Dendrite
Dendrite is a lightweight, efficient Matrix homeserver written in Go by the Matrix.org team. It is designed to be a more resource-efficient alternative to Synapse while remaining fully compatible with the Matrix protocol.
- Lower memory footprint than Synapse
- Federated Matrix protocol
- End-to-end encryption support
- Polylith and monolith deployment modes
Cinny vs Dendrite: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: Dendrite's repository is archived and no longer developed, while Cinny is actively maintained. Cinny is written in TypeScript, while Dendrite is built with Go. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Cinny versus Apache-2.0 for Dendrite. Cinny is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Dendrite. Dendrite is the more established project (first released 2017), while Cinny arrived in 2021.
Why pick each one
Choose Cinny if…
- Lightweight to host
- Attractive interface
Watch out for
- Fewer features than Element
- Matrix-only
Choose Dendrite if…
- Much lighter than Synapse
- Active development by Matrix.org
Watch out for
- Some Synapse features still missing
- Less battle-tested at large scale
Frequently asked questions
Is Cinny or Dendrite better?
Neither is universally better. Dendrite has the larger community, while Cinny is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Cinny and Dendrite free and open-source?
Yes. Cinny is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Dendrite under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Cinny and Dendrite with Docker?
Cinny: yes. Dendrite: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Cinny or Dendrite?
Cinny has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Dendrite. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.