head to head · open source
Signal vs Tongsuo
Signal has 29,568 GitHub stars, 6,933 forks, 498 open issues and last shipped 4 days ago. Tongsuo has 1,554 stars, 263 forks, 160 open issues and last shipped 8 days ago. Signal leads on adoption by 1,803% (29,568 vs 1,554 stars). Signal is written in Kotlin under AGPL-3.0; Tongsuo is written in C under Apache-2.0. Signal has attracted 23% as many forks as stars, Tongsuo 17%. Signal 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 | Tongsuo | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 30K | ★ 1.6K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Kotlin | C |
| Last push | 2026-10-30 | 2026-10-26 |
| Forks | ⑂ 6.9K | ⑂ 263 |
| 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 Tongsuo if
- You want the Tongsuo feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C
- You evaluated both and Tongsuo 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 Tongsuo
OpenAtom 铜锁/Tongsuo ========================= [![tongsuo logo]][www.tongsuo.net] [![github actions ci badge]][github actions ci] ![GitHub Release][github release] [![GitHub Downloads (all assets, all releases)][github downloads]]( 铜锁/Tongsuo是一个提供现代密码学算法和安全通信协议的开源基础密码库，为存储、网络、密钥管理、隐私计算等诸多业务场景提供底层的密码学基础能力，实现数据在传输、使用、存储等过程中的私密性、完整性和可认证性，为数据生命周期中的隐私和安全提供保护能力。 铜锁获得了国家密码管理局商用密码检测中心颁发的商用密码产品认证证书，助力用户在国密改造、密评、等保等过程中，更加严谨地满足我国商用密码技术合规的要求。可在此处下载资质原始文件。 特性 ========================= 铜锁提供如下主要的功能特性： 技术合规能力 符合 GM/T 0028《密码模块安全技术要求》的"软件密码模块安全一级"资质 符合 GM/T 0005 2021《随机性检测规范》 零知识证明（ZKP） Bulletproofs range Bulletproofs R1CS 密码学算法…
read the full Tongsuo overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Signal or Tongsuo more popular?
Signal has 29,568 GitHub stars and Tongsuo has 1,554. Signal has the larger community by that measure.
Are Signal and Tongsuo free?
Both are open source. Signal is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Tongsuo under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Signal and Tongsuo?
Signal is written in Kotlin and Tongsuo 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, Signal or Tongsuo?
Choose Signal if you want the larger community (29,568 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Tongsuo if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.