head to head · open source
Element vs rememory
Element has 13,470 GitHub stars, 2,757 forks, 3,779 open issues and last shipped yesterday. rememory has 1,452 stars, 79 forks, 20 open issues and last shipped 14 days ago. Element leads on adoption by 828% (13,470 vs 1,452 stars). Element is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0; rememory is written in Go under Apache-2.0. Element has attracted 20% as many forks as stars, rememory 5%. 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 | rememory | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 13K | ★ 1.5K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-05 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.8K | ⑂ 79 |
| 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 rememory if
- You want the rememory 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 rememory 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 rememory
ReMemory is an Apache 2.0 licensed encryption tool written in Go that seals your files with age encryption, splits the decryption key into separate pieces held by people you trust, and lets a threshold of those people unlock the archive together without any server being involved.
read the full rememory overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Element or rememory more popular?
Element has 13,470 GitHub stars and rememory has 1,452. Element has the larger community by that measure.
Are Element and rememory free?
Both are open source. Element is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and rememory under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Element and rememory?
Element is written in TypeScript and rememory 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 rememory?
Choose Element if you want the larger community (13,470 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose rememory if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.