Delta Chat vs Jami
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted chat & communication options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Delta Chat
Decentralized messenger built on top of email
VS
Jami
Fully distributed, peer-to-peer encrypted communication
| Feature | Delta Chat | Jami |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 82 · Excellent | 62 · Good |
| Category | Chat & Communication | Chat & Communication |
| License | MPL-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Rust | C++ |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, binary | bare-metal, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 929 | ★ 44 |
| First released | 2017 | 2016 |
| Replaces | WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram | Skype, Zoom, WhatsApp |
What are Delta Chat and Jami?
Delta Chat
Delta Chat is a messaging app that uses standard email servers as its transport, providing chat-like UX with end-to-end encryption. Any IMAP/SMTP mail server can serve as the self-hosted backend.
- Uses existing email infrastructure
- Autocrypt end-to-end encryption
- No phone number required
- Cross-platform clients
Jami
Jami is a free and universal communication platform that preserves privacy through a fully distributed, peer-to-peer architecture with no central servers. It supports messaging, voice, and video calls.
- No central server, fully P2P
- End-to-end encrypted calls and chat
- Cross-platform clients
- Can run a private rendezvous server
Delta Chat vs Jami: key differences
Delta Chat is written in Rust, while Jami is built with C++. Licensing differs — MPL-2.0 for Delta Chat versus GPL-3.0 for Jami. Delta Chat has the considerably larger community, at 929 GitHub stars versus 44.
Why pick each one
Choose Delta Chat if…
- Leverages decentralized email
- No new server protocol
Watch out for
- Email latency for messages
- Needs an IMAP/SMTP account
Choose Jami if…
- No infrastructure required
- Strong privacy model
Watch out for
- P2P can be unreliable behind NAT
- No always-online message storage
Frequently asked questions
Is Delta Chat or Jami better?
Neither is universally better. Delta Chat has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Delta Chat and Jami free and open-source?
Yes. Delta Chat is licensed under MPL-2.0 and Jami under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Delta Chat and Jami with Docker?
Delta Chat: check the project docs for container support. Jami: check the project docs for container support.