Assembly Line

Alternatives to Google Chat in 2026

3 commercial products, led by Discord, Microsoft Teams and Slack. 7 open-source projects you can run yourself, led by Zulip, Element-web and Chat.

Open source

  1. 1
    Zulip zulip

    Zulip server and web application. Open-source team chat that helps teams stay productive and focused.

    Complete system Production-ready Your team finds Slack threads chaotic and wants organised, asynchronous conversations, self-hosted or hosted.

    ★ 26k Apache-2.0 Python Active, pushed today
  2. 2
    Element-web element-hq

    A glossy Matrix collaboration client for the web.

    Complete system Production-ready You use Matrix and want the most complete client, or want to host your own web client.

    ★ 14k AGPL-3.0 TypeScript Active, pushed today
  3. 3
    Chat tinode

    Instant messaging platform. Backend in Go. Clients: Swift iOS, Java Android, JS webapp, scriptable command line; chatbots

    Complete system Usable You want to embed or run your own messaging service with ready clients.

    ★ 14k GPL-3.0 Go Active, pushed 8 days ago
  4. 4
    Synapse element-hq

    Synapse: Matrix homeserver written in Python/Twisted + Rust

    Complete system Production-ready You want to run your own Matrix server for a team or community that can federate with others.

    ★ 4.8k AGPL-3.0 Python Active, pushed today
  5. 5
    Quiet TryQuiet

    A private, p2p alternative to Slack and Discord built on Tor & IPFS

    Complete system Experimental A small group values running chat with no server at all and accepts missing features compared with Slack.

    ★ 2.7k GPL-3.0 TypeScript Active, pushed today
  6. 6
    Colanode colanode

    Open-source and local-first Slack and Notion alternative that puts you in control of your data

    Complete system Experimental A small team wants chat and docs together on its own server with offline support.

    ★ 5.2k Apache-2.0 TypeScript Slowing, pushed 7 months ago
  7. 7
    Raven frappe

    Simple, open source team messaging platform

    Complete system Usable Your company runs ERPNext or other Frappe apps and wants chat inside the same system.

    ★ 839 AGPL-3.0 TypeScript Active, pushed today

Commercial

  1. 1
    Discord Discord Inc.

    American online communication software

    Complete system Production-ready You run a public or semi-public community, such as gamers, an open-source project or a creator audience.

    42k readers a month Since 2015 Commercial
  2. 2
    Microsoft Teams Microsoft

    Team collaboration application

    Complete system Production-ready Your business already pays for Microsoft 365 and wants chat and video meetings without another vendor.

    20k readers a month Since 2017 Commercial
  3. 3
    Slack Salesforce, Inc.

    Boost productivity and save time with Slack‌ – ‌the AI work platform for managing projects, automating workflows and connecting teams securely. Start working smarter today.

    Complete system Production-ready A team wants the chat tool with the widest integration ecosystem and is willing to pay per seat.

    8.4k readers a month Since 2013 Commercial

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