Ferdium 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.
Not the right match-up?
Ferdium
All-in-one messenger that combines chat services
VS
SimpleX Chat
Private messenger without any user identifiers
| Feature | Ferdium | SimpleX Chat |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Chat & Communication | Chat & Communication |
| License | Apache-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | Haskell |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary, source | docker, binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 4,478 | ★ 19,211 |
| First released | 2021 | 2021 |
| Replaces | Rambox, Station | Signal, WhatsApp, Telegram |
Why pick each one
Choose Ferdium if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (4.5k GitHub stars)
Frequently asked questions
Is Ferdium or SimpleX Chat better?
Neither is universally better. SimpleX Chat has the larger community, while Ferdium is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Ferdium and SimpleX Chat free and open-source?
Yes. Ferdium is licensed under Apache-2.0 and SimpleX Chat under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Ferdium and SimpleX Chat with Docker?
Ferdium: yes. SimpleX Chat: yes.