Gamja vs Glowing Bear
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted chat & communication options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Gamja | Glowing Bear |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Category | Chat & Communication | Chat & Communication |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | JavaScript | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 32 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 400 | ★ 978 |
| First released | 2020 | 2014 |
| Replaces | IRCCloud | IRCCloud, Slack |
What are Gamja and Glowing Bear?
Gamja
Gamja is a minimal IRC client for the web designed to pair with the soju bouncer. It is small, fast, and supports IRCv3 features for a modern chat experience.
- Very lightweight static web app
- IRCv3 support
- Pairs with soju bouncer
- No build step required
Glowing Bear
Glowing Bear is a web front end that connects to a WeeChat relay, giving the powerful WeeChat IRC client a modern browser interface. It supports notifications, themes, and mobile use.
- WeeChat relay front end
- Browser-based IRC
- Push notifications
- Theme support
Gamja vs Glowing Bear: key differences
Both projects are written in JavaScript. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Gamja versus GPL-3.0 for Glowing Bear. Gamja is the lighter option, starting around 32 MB of RAM against 64 MB for Glowing Bear. Glowing Bear is the more established project (first released 2014), while Gamja arrived in 2020. Glowing Bear has the considerably larger community, at 978 GitHub stars versus 400. Glowing Bear lists first-class Docker deployment; Gamja does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Gamja if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in JavaScript
- Tiny footprint — runs in 32 MB RAM
Watch out for
- Minimal feature set
- Best used with a bouncer
Choose Glowing Bear if…
- Leverages WeeChat power
- Works on mobile browsers
Watch out for
- Requires WeeChat relay
- IRC focused
Frequently asked questions
Is Gamja or Glowing Bear better?
Neither is universally better. Glowing Bear has the larger community, while Gamja is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Gamja and Glowing Bear free and open-source?
Yes. Gamja is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Glowing Bear under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Gamja and Glowing Bear with Docker?
Gamja: check the project docs for container support. Glowing Bear: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Gamja or Glowing Bear?
Gamja has the smaller minimum footprint at 32 MB of RAM, compared to about 64 MB for Glowing Bear. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.