Fractal vs gomuks
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?
| Feature | Fractal | gomuks |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Matrix & XMPP | Matrix & XMPP |
| License | GPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Rust | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 900 | ★ 1,706 |
| First released | 2017 | 2018 |
| Replaces | Slack, Discord | Slack, Discord |
Why pick each one
Choose Fractal if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in Rust
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Choose gomuks if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Active community (1.7k GitHub stars)
- Written in Go
Frequently asked questions
Is Fractal or gomuks better?
Neither is universally better. gomuks has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Fractal and gomuks free and open-source?
Yes. Fractal is licensed under GPL-3.0 and gomuks under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Fractal and gomuks with Docker?
Fractal: check the project docs for container support. gomuks: check the project docs for container support.