Fractal vs ZNC
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 | ZNC |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Matrix & XMPP | Matrix & XMPP |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Rust | C++ |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 900 | ★ 2,123 |
| First released | 2017 | 2004 |
| Replaces | Slack, Discord | IRCCloud |
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
Frequently asked questions
Is Fractal or ZNC better?
Neither is universally better. ZNC 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 ZNC free and open-source?
Yes. Fractal is licensed under GPL-3.0 and ZNC under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Fractal and ZNC with Docker?
Fractal: check the project docs for container support. ZNC: yes.