Poezio vs Synapse
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?
Poezio
Console XMPP client modeled after IRC clients
VS
Synapse
Reference homeserver for the Matrix network
| Feature | Poezio | Synapse |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Matrix & XMPP | Matrix & XMPP |
| License | GPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Python | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 32 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 200 | ★ 4,503 |
| First released | 2010 | 2014 |
| Replaces | Slack | Slack, Discord, WhatsApp |
Why pick each one
Choose Poezio if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Written in Python
- Tiny footprint — runs in 32 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Poezio or Synapse better?
Neither is universally better. Synapse has the larger community, while Poezio is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Poezio and Synapse free and open-source?
Yes. Poezio is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Synapse under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Poezio and Synapse with Docker?
Poezio: check the project docs for container support. Synapse: yes.