head to head · open source
Cinny vs Quiet
Cinny has 3,897 GitHub stars, 578 forks, 354 open issues and last shipped 5 days ago. Quiet has 2,647 stars, 145 forks, 773 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Cinny leads on adoption by 47% (3,897 vs 2,647 stars). Cinny is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0; Quiet is written in C under GPL-3.0. Cinny has attracted 15% as many forks as stars, Quiet 5%. Quiet was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| Cinny | Quiet | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 3.9K | ★ 2.6K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | C |
| Last push | 2026-09-15 | 2026-09-19 |
| Forks | ⑂ 578 | ⑂ 145 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Cinny if
- You weight community size — 3.9K stars and counting
- You want the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Quiet if
- You want the Quiet feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C
- You evaluated both and Quiet fits your workflow better
About Cinny
Cinny is an open source Matrix client written in TypeScript under AGPL 3.0. It lives in the Matrix ecosystem and is presented as "yet another matrix client," focusing on a simple, elegant, and secure interface. Its stated goal is an instant messaging application that is easy for people and has a modern touch.
read the full Cinny overview →
About Quiet
Quiet is an open source team chat application that aims to provide a private, peer to peer alternative to Slack, Discord, and Element. It is built around Tor and IPFS, and it is designed so that a team can communicate without trusting a central service or operating its own server. The project lives in the privacy and decentralized software ecosystem.
read the full Quiet overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Cinny or Quiet more popular?
Cinny has 3,897 GitHub stars and Quiet has 2,647. Cinny has the larger community by that measure.
Are Cinny and Quiet free?
Both are open source. Cinny is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Quiet under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Cinny and Quiet?
Cinny is written in TypeScript and Quiet in C. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Cinny or Quiet?
Choose Cinny if you want the larger community (3,897 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Quiet if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.