Movim vs Profanity
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted matrix & xmpp options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Movim
Social and chat platform built on XMPP
VS
Profanity
Console-based XMPP client inspired by irssi
| Feature | Movim | Profanity |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Matrix & XMPP | Matrix & XMPP |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | PHP | C |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 32 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 2,038 | ★ 1,530 |
| First released | 2010 | 2012 |
| Replaces | Facebook, Slack | Slack |
Why pick each one
Choose Movim if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (2k GitHub stars)
- Written in PHP
Choose Profanity if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Active community (1.5k GitHub stars)
- Written in C
- Tiny footprint — runs in 32 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Movim or Profanity better?
Neither is universally better. Movim has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Movim and Profanity free and open-source?
Yes. Movim is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Profanity under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Movim and Profanity with Docker?
Movim: yes. Profanity: check the project docs for container support.