head to head · open source
Signal vs Wire
Signal has 29,352 GitHub stars, 6,888 forks, 498 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Wire has 2,549 stars, 180 forks, 173 open issues and last shipped 9 months ago. Signal leads on adoption by 1,052% (29,352 vs 2,549 stars). Signal is written in Kotlin under AGPL-3.0; Wire is written in various languages under GPL-3.0. Signal has attracted 23% as many forks as stars, Wire 7%. 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 | Wire | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 29K | ★ 2.5K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Kotlin | — |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-01-05 |
| Forks | ⑂ 6.9K | ⑂ 180 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Signal if
- You weight community size — 29K 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 Wire if
- You want the Wire feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- You evaluated both and Wire fits your workflow better
About Signal
Signal Android is a secure messaging application for Android devices that delivers private communication via end to end encryption. Developed by Signal Messenger, LLC, it operates within the broader Signal ecosystem, which includes official iOS and desktop clients. The app uses mobile data or Wi Fi to send and receive encrypted messages, voice calls, and video calls without relying on traditional SMS or telephony infrastructure.
read the full Signal overview →
About Wire
Wire is an open source secure collaboration platform whose GitHub overview repository gathers code for clients, encryption, audio/video/signaling, server components, and protocol definitions. It lives in the security and privacy ecosystem, specifically data security and privacy.
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Frequently asked questions
Is Signal or Wire more popular?
Signal has 29,352 GitHub stars and Wire has 2,549. Signal has the larger community by that measure.
Are Signal and Wire free?
Both are open source. Signal is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Wire under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Signal and Wire?
Signal is written in Kotlin and Wire in various languages. 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 Wire?
Choose Signal if you want the larger community (29,352 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Wire if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.