gomuks vs SchildiChat
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted matrix & xmpp options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | gomuks | SchildiChat |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 85 · Excellent | 15 · At risk |
| Status | Actively maintained | Archived |
| Category | Matrix & XMPP | Matrix & XMPP |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Go | Shell |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,727 | ★ 464 |
| First released | 2018 | 2020 |
| Replaces | Slack, Discord | Slack, WhatsApp |
What are gomuks and SchildiChat?
gomuks
gomuks is a terminal user interface client for the Matrix protocol. It supports end-to-end encryption and provides a keyboard-driven chat experience for people who prefer the command line.
- Terminal UI
- End-to-end encryption
- Keyboard-driven
- Single Go binary
SchildiChat
SchildiChat is a fork of Element that adds a unified message bubble layout and other usability improvements. The web version can be self-hosted to connect to any Matrix homeserver.
- Message bubble layout
- Element compatibility
- End-to-end encryption
- Unified chat list
gomuks vs SchildiChat: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: SchildiChat's repository is archived and no longer developed, while gomuks is actively maintained. Gomuks is written in Go, while SchildiChat is built with Shell. Gomuks is the more established project (first released 2018), while SchildiChat arrived in 2020. Gomuks has the considerably larger community, at 1,727 GitHub stars versus 464. SchildiChat lists first-class Docker deployment; gomuks does not.
Why pick each one
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
Choose SchildiChat if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Shell
Watch out for
- Tracks Element upstream
- Matrix-only
Frequently asked questions
Is gomuks or SchildiChat 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 gomuks and SchildiChat free and open-source?
Yes. gomuks is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and SchildiChat under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run gomuks and SchildiChat with Docker?
gomuks: check the project docs for container support. SchildiChat: yes.