FusionPBX vs Papercups
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?
FusionPBX
Multi-tenant web GUI for FreeSWITCH
VS
Papercups
Open-source live chat and customer messaging
| Feature | FusionPBX | Papercups |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Chat & Communication | Chat & Communication |
| License | MPL-1.1 | MIT |
| Language | PHP | Elixir |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,038 | ★ 6,097 |
| First released | 2013 | 2020 |
| Replaces | 3CX, RingCentral | Intercom, Drift |
Why pick each one
Choose FusionPBX if…
- Released under the MPL-1.1 license
- Active community (1k GitHub stars)
- Written in PHP
Choose Papercups if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 6.1k GitHub stars
- Written in Elixir
Frequently asked questions
Is FusionPBX or Papercups better?
Papercups is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider FusionPBX if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are FusionPBX and Papercups free and open-source?
Yes. FusionPBX is licensed under MPL-1.1 and Papercups under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run FusionPBX and Papercups with Docker?
FusionPBX: check the project docs for container support. Papercups: yes.