soju vs The Lounge
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted chat & communication options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
The Lounge
Modern, self-hosted web IRC client
| Feature | soju | The Lounge |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Category | Chat & Communication | Chat & Communication |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | Go | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary, source | docker, binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,000 | ★ 6,336 |
| First released | 2020 | 2014 |
| Replaces | IRCCloud | IRCCloud, Slack |
What are soju and The Lounge?
soju
soju is a modern IRC bouncer that keeps you connected to IRC networks and stores message history while you are away. It supports multiple users and networks from a single instance.
- Multi-user and multi-network
- Persistent message buffers
- IRCv3 support
- Pairs with the Gamja web client
The Lounge
The Lounge is a modern web-based IRC client that you host yourself, staying always connected and synchronizing across devices. It offers a responsive interface accessible from any browser.
- Always-on IRC connection
- Synchronized multi-device experience
- Responsive web and mobile UI
- Push notifications
soju vs The Lounge: key differences
Soju is written in Go, while The Lounge is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for soju versus MIT for The Lounge. Soju is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 256 MB for The Lounge. The Lounge is the more established project (first released 2014), while soju arrived in 2020. The Lounge has the considerably larger community, at 6,336 GitHub stars versus 1,000.
Why pick each one
Choose soju if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (1k GitHub stars)
- Written in Go
Watch out for
- Requires an IRC client
- Setup needs CLI knowledge
Choose The Lounge if…
- Great IRC experience in the browser
- Multi-user support
Watch out for
- IRC-only
- No built-in voice or video
Frequently asked questions
Is soju or The Lounge better?
The Lounge is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider soju if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are soju and The Lounge free and open-source?
Yes. soju is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and The Lounge under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run soju and The Lounge with Docker?
soju: yes. The Lounge: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, soju or The Lounge?
soju has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for The Lounge. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.