head to head · open source
Zulip vs openvidu
Zulip has 25,929 GitHub stars, 10,263 forks, 2,008 open issues and last shipped yesterday. openvidu has 2,129 stars, 477 forks, 103 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Zulip leads on adoption by 1,118% (25,929 vs 2,129 stars). Zulip is written in Python under Apache-2.0; openvidu is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0. Zulip has attracted 40% as many forks as stars, openvidu 22%. Zulip was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (chat), 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
| Zulip | openvidu | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 26K | ★ 2.1K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-19 | 2026-09-18 |
| Forks | ⑂ 10K | ⑂ 477 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Zulip if
- You weight community size — 26K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick openvidu if
- You want the openvidu feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and openvidu fits your workflow better
About Zulip
Zulip is an open source organized team chat application built on topic based threading, aimed at distributed teams that need live and asynchronous conversation in one place, and it is positioned as an open alternative to Slack.
read the full Zulip overview →
About openvidu
OpenVidu is an open source platform for building real time video and audio applications. It lives in the TypeScript, WebRTC, and collaboration software ecosystem, and it is built on LiveKit and mediasoup. The project gives teams a self hosted base for video conferencing, rooms, chat, and media workflows under an Apache 2.0 license.
read the full openvidu overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Zulip or openvidu more popular?
Zulip has 25,929 GitHub stars and openvidu has 2,129. Zulip has the larger community by that measure.
Are Zulip and openvidu free?
Both are open source. Zulip is licensed under Apache-2.0 and openvidu under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Zulip and openvidu?
Zulip is written in Python and openvidu 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, Zulip or openvidu?
Choose Zulip if you want the larger community (25,929 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose openvidu if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.