ngIRCd vs SimpleX Chat
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted chat & communication options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
ngIRCd
Lightweight Unix IRC server that is easy to configure
VS
SimpleX Chat
Private messenger without any user identifiers
| Feature | ngIRCd | SimpleX Chat |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Chat & Communication | Chat & Communication |
| License | GPL-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | C | Haskell |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 32 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | docker, binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 574 | ★ 19,211 |
| First released | 2001 | 2021 |
| Replaces | Slack | Signal, WhatsApp, Telegram |
Why pick each one
Choose ngIRCd if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in C
- Tiny footprint — runs in 32 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is ngIRCd or SimpleX Chat better?
Neither is universally better. SimpleX Chat has the larger community, while ngIRCd is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are ngIRCd and SimpleX Chat free and open-source?
Yes. ngIRCd is licensed under GPL-2.0 and SimpleX Chat under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run ngIRCd and SimpleX Chat with Docker?
ngIRCd: check the project docs for container support. SimpleX Chat: yes.