Conduit vs Profanity
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted matrix & xmpp options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Conduit
Simple, fast and reliable Matrix homeserver in Rust
VS
Profanity
Console-based XMPP client inspired by irssi
| Feature | Conduit | Profanity |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Category | Matrix & XMPP | Matrix & XMPP |
| License | Apache-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Rust | C |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 32 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary, source | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 2,200 | ★ 1,542 |
| First released | 2020 | 2012 |
| Replaces | Slack, Discord | Slack |
What are Conduit and Profanity?
Conduit
Conduit is a lightweight Matrix homeserver written in Rust that aims to be easy to set up and run on small servers. It uses an embedded database and requires minimal configuration.
- Embedded database, no external DB
- Very low resource usage
- Single binary deployment
- Matrix federation support
Profanity
Profanity is a console XMPP client whose interface is inspired by irssi. It supports OMEMO and OTR encryption, group chats, and a fully keyboard-driven workflow for the terminal.
- Terminal interface
- OMEMO and OTR encryption
- Keyboard-driven workflow
- Plugin support
Conduit vs Profanity: key differences
Conduit is written in Rust, while Profanity is built with C. Licensing differs — Apache-2.0 for Conduit versus GPL-3.0 for Profanity. Profanity is the lighter option, starting around 32 MB of RAM against 128 MB for Conduit. Profanity is the more established project (first released 2012), while Conduit arrived in 2020. Conduit lists first-class Docker deployment; Profanity does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Conduit if…
- Extremely easy to deploy
- Runs on a Raspberry Pi
Watch out for
- Not all Matrix features implemented
- Smaller ecosystem
Choose Profanity if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Active community (1.5k GitHub stars)
- Written in C
- Tiny footprint — runs in 32 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Conduit or Profanity better?
Conduit is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Profanity if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Conduit and Profanity free and open-source?
Yes. Conduit is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Profanity under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Conduit and Profanity with Docker?
Conduit: yes. Profanity: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Conduit or Profanity?
Profanity has the smaller minimum footprint at 32 MB of RAM, compared to about 128 MB for Conduit. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.