head to head · open source
Element vs certificates
Element has 13,470 GitHub stars, 2,757 forks, 3,779 open issues and last shipped yesterday. certificates has 8,878 stars, 594 forks, 299 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Element leads on adoption by 52% (13,470 vs 8,878 stars). Element is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0; certificates is written in Go under Apache-2.0. Element has attracted 20% as many forks as stars, certificates 7%. Element 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
| Element | certificates | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 13K | ★ 8.9K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.8K | ⑂ 594 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Element if
- You weight community size — 13K 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 certificates if
- You want the certificates feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and certificates fits your workflow better
About Element
Element is a Matrix collaboration client for the web and desktop, and its tagline describes it as secure, decentralized messaging for teams and individuals. It is built with the Matrix JS SDK and lives in the Matrix ecosystem as an open alternative to Slack and Google Meet.
read the full Element overview →
About certificates
step ca is an open source online certificate authority that issues X.509 and SSH certificates and runs as an ACME server, built for DevOps teams that need automated certificate management without a commercial PKI contract.
read the full certificates overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Element or certificates more popular?
Element has 13,470 GitHub stars and certificates has 8,878. Element has the larger community by that measure.
Are Element and certificates free?
Both are open source. Element is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and certificates under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Element and certificates?
Element is written in TypeScript and certificates in Go. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Element or certificates?
Choose Element if you want the larger community (13,470 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose certificates if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.