Fractal vs Tuwunel
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?
Fractal
GNOME-native Matrix messaging client
VS
Tuwunel
Simple, fast and reliable chat server powered by Matrix based on
| Feature | Fractal | Tuwunel |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Matrix & XMPP | Matrix & XMPP |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Rust | Rust |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 50 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 900 | ★ 2,407 |
| First released | 2017 | 2025 |
| Replaces | Slack, Discord | Conduit, Dendrite, Synapse |
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 Tuwunel if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Active community (2.4k GitHub stars)
- Written in Rust
- Tiny footprint — runs in 50 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Fractal or Tuwunel better?
Neither is universally better. Tuwunel has the larger community, while Fractal is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Fractal and Tuwunel free and open-source?
Yes. Fractal is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Tuwunel under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Fractal and Tuwunel with Docker?
Fractal: check the project docs for container support. Tuwunel: check the project docs for container support.