Rocket.Chat vs Zulip
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Rocket.Chat
Open-source, self-managed chat for security-focused teams
Zulip
Open-source team chat that organizes channels by topic
Where they differ
- Rocket.Chat is end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
At a glance
| Rocket.Chat | Zulip | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | Not published | $3.50 per user / month self-hosted (billed monthly); Cloud from $6.67 billed annually |
| Free plan | Starter: a free self-managed workspace for up to 50 users with single sign-on, end-to-end encryption and community support. The MIT-licensed Community edition is also free. | Zulip Cloud Free: 10,000 messages of search history and 5 GB of file storage in total. Self-hosting is free with all features, with mobile notifications for up to 10 users. |
| Free trial | Qualifying government, defense and critical infrastructure organizations can get a free guided, hosted evaluation. | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Rocket.Chat Technologies Corp. | Kandra Labs, Inc. |
| Price read from | rocket.chat | zulip.com |
| Checked | Oct 5, 2026 | Oct 5, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Rocket.Chat
- Organizations that must host chat themselves for data sovereignty
- Small teams of up to 50 that can run their own server
- Government and defense groups that need air-gapped deployment
- Agencies that federate with partners over the Matrix protocol
Zulip
- Distributed teams that prefer asynchronous, topic-organized conversations
- Open-source projects, research groups and communities seeking sponsored plans
- Organizations that want to self-host open-source chat
- Classes and schools, which get education pricing
Worth knowing
Rocket.Chat
- Paid plan prices are not published; Commercial, Government and Defense are quoted by sales.
- Starter stops at 50 users, cannot be deployed air-gapped and has community support only, with no option to buy support.
- The Community edition has core messaging only and 100 concurrent users, and the vendor says it is not suited to business-critical production use.
- The free options are self-managed, so the team installs and maintains the server; Rocket.Chat-run hosting comes with paid plans.
Zulip
- Zulip Cloud Free searches only the most recent 10,000 messages and has 5 GB of file storage for the whole organization.
- SAML single sign-on and SCIM on Zulip Cloud need the Plus plan, which has a 10-user minimum; self-hosted Business has a 25-user minimum.
- Voice and video calls depend on an outside provider such as Zoom or Jitsi.
- Self-hosted Free limits mobile push notifications to 10 users unless the organization registers as an eligible community.
Key features
Rocket.Chat
- Channels, direct messages and threads
- Channels, groups, direct messages and threaded discussions with multimedia and file sharing, searchable message history, read receipts and an interface in 64 languages.
- Deployment on your own terms
- Workspaces run on-premises, in a private or sovereign cloud, or on Rocket.Chat's dedicated hosting. Air-gapped deployment is available on paid plans only.
- Identity and access controls
- Active Directory and LDAP authentication, single sign-on, multi-factor authentication and role-based access control are included from the free Starter plan.
- Encryption and data policies
- End-to-end encryption can be switched on for messages and files, alongside data retention policies, data loss prevention and content moderation.
- Video through integrations
- Calls connect through Pexip, Jitsi, BigBlueButton, Google Meet or Zoom on Starter. The Community edition supports Jitsi and BigBlueButton only.
- Federation, apps and API
- Matrix protocol federation links separate organizations in shared channels, and the Marketplace, Apps Engine and open API cover custom apps and integrations.
Zulip
- Topic-based threading
- A new conversation starts by giving it a brief topic inside a channel, and replies stay in that context. Messages can be moved between topics, and topics marked as resolved.
- Cloud or self-hosted
- The same 100% open-source software runs on Zulip Cloud or on your own server, and export and import tools let an organization move between them.
- Apps for every platform
- Zulip has a web app for any modern browser, desktop apps for Windows, Mac and Linux, mobile apps for iOS and Android, and a terminal app.
- Calls through a provider
- 1:1 and group voice and video calls open in a configurable call provider such as Zoom, Jitsi or BigBlueButton.
- Integrations and API
- More than 130 native integrations, thousands more through Zapier and IFTTT, custom webhooks, a REST API, and chat bridges to Slack, Microsoft Teams and Matrix.
- Formatting and lightweight workflows
- Messages support code syntax highlighting and LaTeX, plus polls and to-do lists, scheduled sends, reminders and extensive keyboard shortcuts.
Plans
Rocket.Chat
Starter$0
Self-managed workspace for up to 50 users with SSO, LDAP, multi-factor authentication, end-to-end encryption and community-only support.
Community$0
Open-source (MIT) edition with core messaging only, up to 100 concurrent users and push notifications capped at 10,000 a month.
CommercialCustom
For commercial enterprises: on-premises, private cloud or dedicated cloud hosting, high availability and regulatory compliance features.
GovernmentCustom
For public sector agencies: on-premises or sovereign cloud deployment, tamper-evident audit logs, retention policies and Matrix federation.
DefenseCustom
For defense and intelligence: air-gapped deployment, DoD ATO up to IL6, FIPS 140-3 validated cryptography and clearance-based access control.
Zulip
Free$0
On Zulip Cloud: 10,000 messages of search history and 5 GB of storage in total. Self-hosted: every feature, with mobile notifications for up to 10 users.
Self-hosted Basic$3.50
per user / month, billed monthly
Self-hosted server with all Zulip features and unlimited mobile notifications.
Cloud Standard$6.67
per user / month, billed annually ($8 billed monthly)
Unlimited search history, 5 GB of file storage per user, message retention policies, custom groups and priority commercial support.
Self-hosted Business$6.67
per user / month, billed annually ($8 billed monthly)
25 users minimum. Email and chat support for SAML and Entra ID single sign-on, AD/LDAP user sync, compliance exports and retention policies.
Cloud Plus$10
per user / month, billed annually ($12 billed monthly)
10 users minimum. Adds 25 GB of file storage per user, SAML single sign-on, SCIM user and group sync, and a custom domain.
Self-hosted EnterpriseCustom
Email, chat and phone support, OpenID Connect single sign-on, group sync, implementation consulting and custom feature development.
Ways to pay less
Rocket.Chat
No public discounts listed.
Zulip
- Annual discount
About 17% less with annual billing
Cloud Standard and self-hosted Business cost $6.67 per user / month billed annually against $8 billed monthly, and Cloud Plus is $10 against $12.
- Other savings
$20 a month off self-hosted plans in year one
The plans page advertises $20 per month off the self-hosted Basic and Business plans for the first year.
- Nonprofit
Free Standard plan for eligible organizations
Open-source projects, academic research, non-profit events and non-profits with no paid staff are generally eligible for a free Zulip Cloud Standard plan, by application.
- Education
Education pricing from $0.67 per user
Standard for Education costs $0.67 per user / month for non-profit institutions and $1 for for-profit ones with annual billing, or $0.80 and $1.20 billed monthly.
