Tuwunel vs ZNC
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?
Tuwunel
Simple, fast and reliable chat server powered by Matrix based on
VS
ZNC
Advanced and flexible IRC bouncer
| Feature | Tuwunel | ZNC |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Matrix & XMPP | Matrix & XMPP |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Rust | C++ |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 50 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 2,407 | ★ 2,123 |
| First released | 2025 | 2004 |
| Replaces | Conduit, Dendrite, Synapse | IRCCloud |
Why pick each one
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 Tuwunel or ZNC better?
Neither is universally better. Tuwunel has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Tuwunel and ZNC free and open-source?
Yes. Tuwunel is licensed under Apache-2.0 and ZNC under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Tuwunel and ZNC with Docker?
Tuwunel: check the project docs for container support. ZNC: yes.