head to head · open source
Mattermost vs Nextcloud
Mattermost has 39,096 GitHub stars, 9,005 forks, 1,012 open issues and last shipped today. Nextcloud has 36,834 stars, 5,224 forks, 3,657 open issues and last shipped today. Mattermost leads on adoption by 6% (39,096 vs 36,834 stars). Mattermost is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; Nextcloud is written in PHP under AGPL-3.0. Mattermost has attracted 23% as many forks as stars, Nextcloud 14%. Mattermost was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (collaboration, hacktoberfest), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
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
| Mattermost | Nextcloud | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 39K | ★ 37K |
| License | Custom / other | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | PHP |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-18 |
| Forks | ⑂ 9.0K | ⑂ 5.2K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Mattermost if
- You weight community size — 39K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Nextcloud if
- You want the Nextcloud feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches PHP
- You evaluated both and Nextcloud fits your workflow better
About Mattermost
Mattermost is an open core, self hosted collaboration platform for teams that need secure chat, workflow automation, voice calling, screen sharing, and AI integration while keeping the deployment under their own control.
read the full Mattermost overview →
About Nextcloud
Nextcloud is a self hosted cloud collaboration platform built in PHP, licensed under AGPL 3.0. It enables organizations and individuals to store, synchronize, and share files, contacts, calendars, and other data on infrastructure they control, replacing reliance on third party cloud services. The project lives in the open source cloud software ecosystem and serves as a decentralized alternative to proprietary suites like Dropbox, Google Workspace, and Microsoft 365.
read the full Nextcloud overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Mattermost or Nextcloud more popular?
Mattermost has 39,096 GitHub stars and Nextcloud has 36,834. Mattermost has the larger community by that measure.
Are Mattermost and Nextcloud free?
Both are open source. Mattermost has no licence declared in this registry, and Nextcloud is licensed under AGPL-3.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Mattermost and Nextcloud?
Mattermost is written in TypeScript and Nextcloud in PHP. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Mattermost or Nextcloud?
Choose Mattermost if you want the larger community (39,096 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose Nextcloud if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.