head to head · open source
srs vs Zulip
srs has 29,414 GitHub stars, 5,708 forks, 8 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. Zulip has 26,158 stars, 10,521 forks, 2,008 open issues and last shipped yesterday. srs leads on adoption by 12% (29,414 vs 26,158 stars). srs is written in C++ under MIT; Zulip is written in Python under Apache-2.0. srs has attracted 19% as many forks as stars, Zulip 40%. Zulip 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
| srs | Zulip | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 29K | ★ 26K |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | C++ | Python |
| Last push | 2026-10-31 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.7K | ⑂ 11K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick srs if
- You weight community size — 29K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Zulip if
- You want the Zulip feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and Zulip fits your workflow better
About srs
SRS(Simple Realtime Server) SRS/8.0 (Free) is a simple, high performance, AI driven real time media server. It supports RTMP, WebRTC, HLS, HTTP FLV, SRT, MPEG DASH, and GB28181 on Linux and macOS across x86 64, ARMv7, AArch64, Apple M1, RISC V, LoongArch, and MIPS architectures. Supported codecs include H.264, H.265, AV1, VP9, AAC, Opus, and G.711. See the complete list of features. Note: For more details on the single node architecture for SRS, please visit the following link. SRS is licenced under MIT, and some third party libraries are distributed under their licenses. Usage Please check the Getting Started…
About Zulip
Zulip overview Zulip is an open source organized team chat app with unique [topic based threading][why zulip] that combines the best of email and chat to make remote work productive and delightful. Fortune 500 companies, [leading open source projects][rust case study], and thousands of other organizations use Zulip every day. Zulip is the only [modern team chat app][features] that is designed for both live and asynchronous conversations. Zulip is built by a distributed community of developers from all around the world, with 99+ people who have each contributed 100+ commits. With over 1,500 contributors merging…
read the full Zulip overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is srs or Zulip more popular?
srs has 29,414 GitHub stars and Zulip has 26,158. srs has the larger community by that measure.
Are srs and Zulip free?
Both are open source. srs is licensed under MIT and Zulip under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between srs and Zulip?
srs is written in C++ and Zulip in Python. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, srs or Zulip?
Choose srs if you want the larger community (29,414 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose Zulip if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.