ejabberd review (2026): is the free plan enough?
Erlang messaging server for XMPP, MQTT, SIP and Matrix
Black Friday: is there a ejabberd sale?
ejabberd report card
Fair · out of 4.0 · graded Nov 13, 2026
Best for a large-scale XMPP, MQTT and SIP server
ejabberd is an Erlang messaging server for XMPP, MQTT, SIP and Matrix, with clustering and a REST API. The Community edition is free to host yourself, but mobile push and relay features sit in a €16,000-a-year Business Edition. Users also need a separate chat app.
Who ejabberd is for
- Fits if you run a large messaging service and know Erlang or XMPP
- Works for companies that want to start free and add paid support later
Who ejabberd is not for
- Not for you if you want a chat app, as it is a server and users need a separate client
- Pricey if you want managed hosting, at €200 a month and rising with traffic
- Pricey if you want Business Edition, at €16,000 a year for a 2-node cluster
- Watch out: TURN, ICE and push for iOS and Android are not in the Community Server
- Skip it if you need paid support on the free edition, since it is community forums only
Why ejabberd gets a 2.0
Five grades, each with its reason. The GPA is their average: an A is 4 points, an F is none.
- CValue for moneyThe Community Server is free to self-host. Managed Fluux starts at €200 a month and Business at €16,000 a year, so the paid side is steep.
- BFree plan and trialThe Community Server is free under GPLv2 with no user cap, but you host it and some features are paid.
- CFeaturesFour protocols, clustering and a REST API. TURN, ICE and mobile push are not in the free edition.
- DEase of useNo rating on record. It is server software, set up and run by an administrator.
- CPlatforms and integrationsRuns on Windows, Mac and Linux servers, with some integrations. It is a server, so users need a separate app.
What these grades rest on. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from ProcessOne's own pages on 13 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. How we review and grade.
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<a href="https://toolgpa.com/tools/ejabberd#review"><img src="https://toolgpa.com/badge/ejabberd.svg" alt="ejabberd: 2.0 GPA on ToolGPA" width="196" height="56"></a>Where ejabberd stands among team communication apps
ejabberd's GPA of 2.0 is higher than 0 of the 75 other team communication apps we grade, and level with 8.
It stands best on free plan and trial (B, above 41 of 75) and worst on ease of use (D, above 1).
Its paid plans start at about $223.44 a month, against a middle price of $6.90 for the category: 50 of the 51 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 1.7 out of 4. 60 tools score higher and cost less.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 76 team communication apps we grade, cut by the letter each got. ejabberd’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 7 of 75, level with 39
- BFree plan and trialAbove 41 of 75, level with 18
- CFeaturesAbove 1 of 75, level with 61
- DEase of useAbove 1 of 75, level with 9
- CPlatforms and integrationsAbove 0 of 75, level with 8
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 66 team communication apps. Further left costs less, and higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. Point at a dot to see which tool it is.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Keep ejabberd, or make your own?
Keep it
To replace ejabberd you would be making chat that a whole team counts on staying up. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 67 of the 75 other team communication apps grade higher. It costs $2,681.28 a year. ejabberd is open source, so there is a third way: take its code and run it yourself.
What you could not
- Chat that a whole team counts on staying up.
- Apps for macOS, Windows and Linux that stay in step with each other.
- It plugs into other products, PostgreSQL, MySQL and LDAP among them, and has an API.
What this rests on. ejabberd’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
What is ejabberd?
ejabberd is a messaging server written in Erlang that speaks XMPP, MQTT, SIP and Matrix from one process. The Community Server is free under the GPLv2 license, and ProcessOne sells a Business Edition and a managed cloud service called Fluux. It is infrastructure for building or hosting chat rather than a finished team chat app.
Worth knowing
- It is a server, not a chat app: users need a separate XMPP client, and you run it yourself unless you pay for Fluux.
- Fluux is priced in euros and by traffic (Jabs) rather than per user; the first step is €200 a month, and the Growing and Established networks start at €1,400 and €6,000 a month.
- The Business Edition price of €16,000 a year is for a 2-node cluster, and its TURN/ICE relay and push features are not in the Community Server.
- Support on the Community Server is community forums and documentation only.
Key features
- Four protocols in one server
- XMPP, an MQTT broker, a SIP service and Matrix bridging run in the same process.
- Clustering
- The Community Server has standard active-active clustering; the Business Edition and Fluux add consistent-hash clustering.
- Mobile and web support
- Push notifications, message archive management, multi-device sync, WebSocket and BOSH are built into the server.
- REST API and CLI
- A REST API and the ejabberdctl command line cover user and room management.
- Database backends
- The site lists PostgreSQL, MySQL, LDAP and ODBC backends.
- Business and managed options
- Long-term support releases, FIPS compliance and direct engineer support come with the Business Edition, and Fluux runs it as a managed service.
ejabberd pricing
As of Nov 13, 2026, ejabberd has a free plan, and paid plans start at €200 per month (Fluux managed cloud).
- Starts at
- €200 per month (Fluux managed cloud)
- Free plan
- The Community Server is free and open source under GPLv2, self-hosted.
- Free trial
- None listed
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Community Server | $0 | Open source under GPLv2; you host it yourself. Supports XMPP, MQTT, SIP and Matrix, with community forums and documentation. |
| Fluux Emerging | €200per month, managed cloud, 1 node on shared servers | Managed by ProcessOne, with a shared-server domain and standard support. Price rises with traffic measured in Jabs: 9,000,000 Jabs at €200, 45,000,000 at €500. |
| Business Edition | €16,000per year for a 2-node cluster | Commercial license with long-term support releases, push for iOS, Android and Firebase, and direct support from ProcessOne. Sold through sales. |
Read from process-one.net on Nov 13, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with ejabberd before you buy.
Works with
- PostgreSQL
- MySQL
- LDAP
- XMPPFramework
- Smack
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Free plan · from $3.50/mo
Common questions
Does ejabberd have an Android app?
No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 13, 2026. ejabberd is listed for Windows, macOS and Linux.
Does ejabberd have an iPhone app?
No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 13, 2026. ejabberd is listed for Windows, macOS and Linux.
Is ejabberd open source?
Yes. ejabberd is open source, according to its own site. It can also be run on a server of your own.
Does ejabberd have an API?
Yes. ejabberd offers a public API, according to its own site.
Sources for this page
The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 13, 2026.