Cozy Contacts vs Citadel
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted groupware options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Cozy Contacts
Contacts management app for the Cozy personal server
VS
Citadel
All-in-one groupware, mail and collaboration server
| Feature | Cozy Contacts | Citadel |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Groupware | Groupware |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | JavaScript | C |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | source | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 11 | ★ 100 |
| First released | 2018 | 1987 |
| Replaces | Google Contacts | Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft 365 |
Why pick each one
Choose Cozy Contacts if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Written in JavaScript
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Cozy Contacts or Citadel better?
Neither is universally better. Citadel has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Cozy Contacts and Citadel free and open-source?
Yes. Cozy Contacts is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Citadel under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Cozy Contacts and Citadel with Docker?
Cozy Contacts: check the project docs for container support. Citadel: check the project docs for container support.