Syphon vs Tuwunel
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?
Syphon
Privacy-focused Matrix client built with Flutter
VS
Tuwunel
Simple, fast and reliable chat server powered by Matrix based on
| Feature | Syphon | Tuwunel |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Matrix & XMPP | Matrix & XMPP |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Dart | Rust |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 50 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,061 | ★ 2,407 |
| First released | 2020 | 2025 |
| Replaces | WhatsApp, Discord | Conduit, Dendrite, Synapse |
Why pick each one
Choose Syphon if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Active community (1.1k GitHub stars)
- Written in Dart
Choose Tuwunel if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Active community (2.4k GitHub stars)
- Written in Rust
- Tiny footprint — runs in 50 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Syphon or Tuwunel better?
Neither is universally better. Tuwunel has the larger community, while Syphon is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Syphon and Tuwunel free and open-source?
Yes. Syphon is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Tuwunel under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Syphon and Tuwunel with Docker?
Syphon: check the project docs for container support. Tuwunel: check the project docs for container support.