Chatmail Relay vs SimpleX Chat
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted chat & communication options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
SimpleX Chat
Private messenger without any user identifiers
| Feature | Chatmail Relay | SimpleX Chat |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 79 · Good | 96 · Excellent |
| Category | Chat & Communication | Chat & Communication |
| License | MPL-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Python | Haskell |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 484 | ★ 19,470 |
| First released | 2023 | 2021 |
| Replaces | WhatsApp, Signal | Signal, WhatsApp, Telegram |
What are Chatmail Relay and SimpleX Chat?
Chatmail Relay
A minimal, opinionated mail server configuration optimized to act as a relay for Delta Chat clients, providing instant, encrypted messaging over standard email. It is provisioned automatically for low-maintenance operation.
- Email-based messaging
- Automatic provisioning
- End-to-end encryption
- Low maintenance
SimpleX Chat
SimpleX Chat is a privacy-focused messaging platform that has no user profiles or identifiers, routing messages through self-hostable relay servers. Users can run their own SMP relay servers for full control.
- No user identifiers at all
- Self-hostable SMP relay servers
- End-to-end encryption
- Decentralized message routing
Chatmail Relay vs SimpleX Chat: key differences
Chatmail Relay is written in Python, while SimpleX Chat is built with Haskell. Licensing differs — MPL-2.0 for Chatmail Relay versus AGPL-3.0 for SimpleX Chat. SimpleX Chat is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Chatmail Relay. SimpleX Chat is the more established project (first released 2021), while Chatmail Relay arrived in 2023. SimpleX Chat has the considerably larger community, at 19,470 GitHub stars versus 484.
Why pick each one
Choose Chatmail Relay if…
- Uses open email standards
- Hard to censor
Watch out for
- Requires mail server knowledge
- Newer project
Choose SimpleX Chat if…
- Best-in-class metadata privacy
- Run your own relays
Watch out for
- Newer protocol
- Group features still maturing
Frequently asked questions
Is Chatmail Relay or SimpleX Chat better?
Neither is universally better. SimpleX Chat has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Chatmail Relay and SimpleX Chat free and open-source?
Yes. Chatmail Relay is licensed under MPL-2.0 and SimpleX Chat under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Chatmail Relay and SimpleX Chat with Docker?
Chatmail Relay: yes. SimpleX Chat: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Chatmail Relay or SimpleX Chat?
SimpleX Chat has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Chatmail Relay. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.