ejabberd vs mautrix-whatsapp
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted matrix & xmpp options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
ejabberd
Robust, scalable XMPP messaging server
VS
mautrix-whatsapp
Matrix-WhatsApp puppeting bridge
| Feature | ejabberd | mautrix-whatsapp |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Matrix & XMPP | Matrix & XMPP |
| License | GPL-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Erlang | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 6,711 | ★ 1,855 |
| First released | 2002 | 2019 |
| Replaces | Slack, WhatsApp | WhatsApp official client |
Why pick each one
Choose mautrix-whatsapp if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (1.9k GitHub stars)
- Written in Go
Frequently asked questions
Is ejabberd or mautrix-whatsapp better?
Neither is universally better. ejabberd has the larger community, while mautrix-whatsapp is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are ejabberd and mautrix-whatsapp free and open-source?
Yes. ejabberd is licensed under GPL-2.0 and mautrix-whatsapp under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run ejabberd and mautrix-whatsapp with Docker?
ejabberd: yes. mautrix-whatsapp: yes.