Element Web vs matrix-appservice-slack

A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted matrix & xmpp options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.

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FeatureElement Webmatrix-appservice-slack
CategoryMatrix & XMPPMatrix & XMPP
LicenseAGPL-3.0Apache-2.0
LanguageTypeScriptTypeScript
Setup difficultyEasyMedium
Min. RAM128 MB256 MB
Deploymentdocker, bare-metal, sourcedocker, source
GitHub stars★ 13,353★ 281
First released20162017
ReplacesSlack, Discord, Microsoft TeamsSlack official client

Why pick each one

Choose Element Web if…

  • Most mature Matrix client
  • Active development
Element Web details

Choose matrix-appservice-slack if…

  • Released under the Apache-2.0 license
  • First-class Docker support for quick deployment
  • Written in TypeScript
  • Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
matrix-appservice-slack details

Frequently asked questions

Is Element Web or matrix-appservice-slack better?

Element Web is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider matrix-appservice-slack if its specific feature set fits your needs better.

Are Element Web and matrix-appservice-slack free and open-source?

Yes. Element Web is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and matrix-appservice-slack under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Element Web and matrix-appservice-slack with Docker?

Element Web: yes. matrix-appservice-slack: yes.

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