KiwiIRC vs Quassel IRC
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted chat & communication options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | KiwiIRC | Quassel IRC |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 57 · Fair | 57 · Fair |
| Category | Chat & Communication | Chat & Communication |
| License | Apache-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Vue | C++ |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 989 | ★ 794 |
| First released | 2011 | 2008 |
| Replaces | Slack, Discord | Slack |
What are KiwiIRC and Quassel IRC?
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
Quassel IRC
Quassel is a distributed IRC client built around a central core that stays connected and one or more clients that attach to it. The core acts as a permanent bouncer storing backlog for all devices.
- Always-on core bouncer
- Synced backlog across devices
- Qt desktop clients
- PostgreSQL or SQLite storage
KiwiIRC vs Quassel IRC: key differences
KiwiIRC is written in Vue, while Quassel IRC is built with C++. Licensing differs — Apache-2.0 for KiwiIRC versus GPL-3.0 for Quassel IRC. Quassel IRC is the more established project (first released 2008), while KiwiIRC arrived in 2011.
Why pick each one
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
Choose Quassel IRC if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in C++
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is KiwiIRC or Quassel IRC 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 KiwiIRC and Quassel IRC free and open-source?
Yes. KiwiIRC is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Quassel IRC under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run KiwiIRC and Quassel IRC with Docker?
KiwiIRC: yes. Quassel IRC: yes.