ircd-hybrid vs KiwiIRC
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted chat & communication options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | ircd-hybrid | KiwiIRC |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 69 · Good | 57 · Fair |
| Category | Chat & Communication | Chat & Communication |
| License | GPL-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | C | Vue |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 200 | ★ 989 |
| First released | 1997 | 2011 |
| Replaces | Slack, Discord | Slack, Discord |
What are ircd-hybrid and KiwiIRC?
ircd-hybrid
ircd-hybrid is a long-standing IRC server daemon known for stability and a lightweight footprint. It supports modern IRC features and modular extensions, and can be self-hosted to run an IRC network.
- Stable lightweight IRC daemon
- Modular extensions
- Long-standing project
KiwiIRC
KiwiIRC is a fully featured IRC client that runs in the browser and can be embedded into any website. It includes a webircgateway component for self-hosting your own embeddable IRC chat.
- Embeddable web IRC widget
- Themeable interface
- Plugin system
- Works without browser plugins
ircd-hybrid vs KiwiIRC: key differences
Ircd-hybrid is written in C, while KiwiIRC is built with Vue. Licensing differs — GPL-2.0 for ircd-hybrid versus Apache-2.0 for KiwiIRC. Ircd-hybrid is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 128 MB for KiwiIRC. Ircd-hybrid is the more established project (first released 1997), while KiwiIRC arrived in 2011. KiwiIRC has the considerably larger community, at 989 GitHub stars versus 200. KiwiIRC lists first-class Docker deployment; ircd-hybrid does not.
Why pick each one
Choose ircd-hybrid if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- Written in C
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Choose KiwiIRC if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Vue
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Watch out for
- IRC-only
- Needs gateway for direct connections
Frequently asked questions
Is ircd-hybrid or KiwiIRC better?
Neither is universally better. KiwiIRC has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are ircd-hybrid and KiwiIRC free and open-source?
Yes. ircd-hybrid is licensed under GPL-2.0 and KiwiIRC under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run ircd-hybrid and KiwiIRC with Docker?
ircd-hybrid: check the project docs for container support. KiwiIRC: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, ircd-hybrid or KiwiIRC?
ircd-hybrid has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 128 MB for KiwiIRC. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.