head to head · open source
Signal vs Quiet
Signal has 29,568 GitHub stars, 6,933 forks, 498 open issues and last shipped 4 days ago. Quiet has 2,660 stars, 150 forks, 773 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Signal leads on adoption by 1,012% (29,568 vs 2,660 stars). Signal is written in Kotlin under AGPL-3.0; Quiet is written in TypeScript under GPL-3.0. Signal has attracted 23% as many forks as stars, Quiet 6%. 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
| Signal | Quiet | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 30K | ★ 2.7K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Kotlin | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-10-30 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 6.9K | ⑂ 150 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Signal if
- You weight community size — 30K stars and counting
- You want the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Kotlin
- 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 TypeScript
- You evaluated both and Quiet fits your workflow better
About Signal
Signal Android Signal is a simple, powerful, and secure messenger that uses your phone's data connection (WiFi/4G/5G) to communicate securely. Millions of people use Signal every day for free and instantaneous communication anywhere in the world. Send and receive high fidelity messages, participate in HD voice/video calls, and explore a growing set of new features that help you stay connected. Signal’s advanced privacy preserving technology is always enabled, so you can focus on sharing the moments that matter with the people who matter to you. Currently available on the Play Store and signal.org. Also available…
read the full Signal overview →
About Quiet
Quiet Encrypted p2p team chat with no servers, just Tor. Downloads How it Works Features Threat Model Mission FAQ Developer setup Quiet is an alternative to team chat apps like Slack, Discord, and Element that does not require trusting a central server or running one's own. In Quiet, all data syncs directly between a team's devices over Tor with no server required. NOTE: Quiet is not audited and should not be used when privacy and security are critical. It lacks basic features and probably won't replace your Slack or Discord yet. That said, it works surprisingly well and we use it daily as a Slack replacement…
read the full Quiet overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Signal or Quiet more popular?
Signal has 29,568 GitHub stars and Quiet has 2,660. Signal has the larger community by that measure.
Are Signal and Quiet free?
Both are open source. Signal is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Quiet under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Signal and Quiet?
Signal is written in Kotlin and Quiet in TypeScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Signal or Quiet?
Choose Signal if you want the larger community (29,568 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.