The Zulip Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about Zulip in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.
Zulip
The Insider’s Guide
Open-source team chat that organizes channels by topic
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among team communication apps, read from Zulip’s own pages.
Made by Kandra Labs, Inc. · checked Oct 5, 2026 · toolgpa.com
Contents
- 01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
- 02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
- 03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
- 04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
- 05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
- 06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
- 07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
ToolGPA put this guide together from Zulip’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on Zulip’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 5, 2026.
Part 01 · Overview
Welcome
What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
2.8
GPA, above 21 of the 33 other team communication apps we grade
Zulip is an open-source team chat app in which every channel conversation is filed under a short topic, so several discussions can run side by side and still be read in context later. It is offered as Zulip Cloud or as software to self-host, with export and import tools for moving between the two. Voice and video calls are handed to a provider such as Zoom or Jitsi rather than built in.
To get you started, here are 9 things to know about Zulip, taken from its own pages and our grades.
It's open source, on Zulip Cloud or your own server, but calls aren't built in and open in Zoom or Jitsi.
- 1
Best for chat you can catch up on hours later
Zulip files every conversation under a short topic, so several discussions can run side by side in one channel.
- 2
Paid plans start at $3.50 a month for each person
As its pricing page puts it: $3.50 per user / month self-hosted (billed monthly); Cloud from $6.67 billed annually.
- 3
There is a free plan
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.
- 4
It runs on 6 platforms
Web, macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android.
- 5
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.
- 6
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.
- 7
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.
- 8
A 2.8 GPA, above 21 of 33
That is against the other team communication apps we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
- 9
Keep it
To replace Zulip 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.
Zulip at a glance
- Pricing
- Free plan, from $3.50 per user / month self-hosted (billed monthly); Cloud from $6.67 billed annually
- Free plan
- Yes
- Free trial
- None stated
- Runs on
- Web, macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android
- Made by
- Kandra Labs, Inc.
- Category
- Team Communication
- Our grade
- 2.8 GPA, good
The report card
Best for chat you can catch up on hours later
Zulip files every conversation under a short topic, so several discussions can run side by side in one channel. It's open source, on Zulip Cloud or your own server, but calls aren't built in and open in Zoom or Jitsi. Cloud Free searches only the latest 10,000 messages, free self-hosting caps phone notifications at 10 users, and SAML needs Cloud Plus with a 10-user minimum.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | B | Self-hosted Basic is $3.50 a user a month, in the cheapest quarter of team chat, and Cloud Standard is $6.67 billed annually, under the $7 middle. Open-source projects, research groups and small nonprofits can apply for Standard free, and schools pay from 67 cents a user. |
| Free plan and trial | B | Self-hosting is free with every feature. Two catches: mobile push notifications stop at 10 users unless you register as an eligible community, and Cloud Free searches only the latest 10,000 messages with 5 GB in total. |
| Features | C | Topics you can rename, move and mark resolved, code highlighting, LaTeX, polls, reminders, 130-plus native integrations and a terminal app. The gap is calls. Zulip builds none, handing voice and video to Zoom, Jitsi or BigBlueButton. |
| Ease of use | C | No App Store rating on record, and the topic model is a habit to learn: every message needs a topic, and a team that doesn't keep them tidy ends up worse off than with plain channels. Self-hosting, if you go that way, is a server to run as well. |
| Platforms and integrations | A | Web, Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone, Android and a terminal app. More than 130 native integrations with thousands more through Zapier and IFTTT, a REST API, custom webhooks, and bridges that pass messages to and from Slack, Microsoft Teams and Matrix. |
An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.
Who Zulip is for
- Fits if your team is spread across time zones and reads chat hours after it happened
- Works for open-source projects and research groups, which can apply for a free Standard plan
Who it is not for
- Skip it if you want voice and video calls built in, as they depend on an outside provider
- Tight if you stay on Cloud Free and need to search old messages, since it covers the latest 10,000 and 5 GB in all
- Not for you if you need SAML on Cloud with under 10 people, because Plus has a 10-user minimum
- Watch out: free self-hosting sends phone push notifications to 10 users only, unless you qualify as a community
- Pricey if you self-host with single sign-on for a small team, as Business has a 25-user minimum
Good to know
Good for
- 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
- 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.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
$3.50
A month to start, for each person. There is a free plan too
Zulip has a free plan. Paid plans start at $3.50 per user / month self-hosted (billed monthly); Cloud from $6.67 billed annually.
Self-hosting is free with every feature.
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 Enterprise
Custom
Email, chat and phone support, OpenID Connect single sign-on, group sync, implementation consulting and custom feature development.
The free plan
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.
Read from zulip.com on Oct 5, 2026.
Ways to pay less
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.
Stated on zulip.comOther 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.
Stated on zulip.comNonprofit
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.
Stated on zulip.comEducation
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.
Stated on zulip.com
Part 03 · Features
What it does
Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
6
Places it runs: Web, macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android
Open-source team chat that organizes channels by topic. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: open source, self-hostable, public API, team chat, file sharing.
Zulip builds none, handing voice and video to Zoom, Jitsi or BigBlueButton.
- 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.
Where it runs
- Web
- macOS
- Windows
- Linux
- iOS
- Android
What it works with
- GitHub
- GitLab
- Jira
- Zapier
- Zoom
- Jitsi
- Sentry
- Google Calendar
Who makes Zulip
Zulip is developed, hosted and supported by Kandra Labs, a company owned by the nonprofit Zulip Foundation; more than 1,500 people have contributed code to the open-source project. Kandra Labs earns money from Zulip Cloud subscriptions and from push-notification and support plans for self-hosted servers; the foundation can also take grants and donations.
- Founded
- 2016zulip.com
- Based
- San Francisco, Californiazulip.com
- Ownership
- Owned by a nonprofit. Kandra Labs is fully owned by the Zulip Foundation, an independent nonprofit created in May 2026 when its founder donated the company to it; the announcement says there are no other stockholders.blog.zulip.com
- Funding
- Its founder wrote in May 2026 that he had been reluctant to take external funding, so the company was funded by his own investment on top of subscription revenue; he then donated it to the nonprofit Zulip Foundation. Its history page says Kandra Labs has been supported by nearly $1M in SBIR grants from the US National Science Foundation.blog.zulip.comzulip.com
- Team
- 12 Kandra Labs team members stayed on to work on Zulip when four of its leaders left in May 2026, according to its announcementblog.zulip.com
- Founders and leaders
- Kim Vandiver, Interim President of Kandra Labs, named in May 2026blog.zulip.com
- Tim Abbott, Founder; director of the Zulip Foundation boardzulip.com
- Hiring
- One listing, for leadership team roles spanning technical, business, management, marketing, sales and product. All openings are remote.zulip.com
- Partner program
- Partner program for resellers, value-added resellers, managed service providers and hosting providers, with a partner onboarding kit. No commission or discount terms are published.zulip.com
- Lately
- Zulip Server 12.3 security release · Sep 21, 2026
- Zulip Server 12.2 security release · Aug 10, 2026
- Zulip Server 12.1 bug fix release · Jun 26, 2026
- Announcing the Zulip Foundation · May 15, 2026
Read on Oct 6, 2026 from the company’s own pages and from news reports. What is not stated there is left out.
Part 04 · Standing
Where it stands
Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
21/33
Other team communication apps it is graded above
Zulip's GPA of 2.8 is higher than 21 of the 33 other team communication apps we grade, and level with 7.
It stands best on platforms and integrations (A, above 15 of 33) and worst on features (C, above 0).
Its paid plans start at $3.50 a month for each person, against a middle price of $7 for the category: 6 of the 28 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.7 out of 4. 3 tools score higher and cost less.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 34 team communication apps we grade, cut by the letter each got. Zulip’s own letter is outlined.
- BValue for moneyAbove 24 of 33
- BFree plan and trialAbove 23 of 33
- CFeaturesAbove 0 of 33
- CEase of useAbove 6 of 33
- APlatforms and integrationsAbove 15 of 33
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 31 team communication apps. Further left costs less; higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. Zulip is the marked dot.
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
Keep it, or make your own?
Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.
Keep it
To replace Zulip 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.
It costs $42 a year. Zulip 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.
- Storing and serving files for other people.
- Apps for macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android that stay in step with each other.
- It is priced for each person, which means accounts and billing for a team.
- It plugs into other products, GitHub, GitLab and Jira among them, and has an API.
What this rests on. Zulip’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.
Part 05 · Alternatives
The alternatives
The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
Slack, Mattermost, Rocket.Chat, Element and Twist
The 5 tools Zulip is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 2.8GPA
Slack
Free plan · from $7.25/mo
Channel-based team messaging with huddles, workflows and AI.
- Zulip is open source and self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Slack also covers workflow automation, documents and video calls.
- 2.4GPA
Mattermost
Free plan
Self-hosted team messaging with playbooks, calls and boards.
- Zulip also covers file sharing.
- Mattermost also covers kanban boards, workflow automation and AI agents.
- 2.4GPA
Rocket.Chat
Free plan
Open-source, self-managed chat for security-focused teams.
- Rocket.Chat is end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
- 2.8GPA
Element
Free plan
End-to-end encrypted chat and calls on the Matrix standard.
- Element is end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
- Element also covers video calls.
- 2.8GPA
Twist
Free plan · from $6/mo
Async team messaging organized into threads.
- Zulip is open source and self-hostable, according to its own site.
Part 06 · Questions
Quick answers
The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
13
Questions, each answered in a line or two
The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.
Is Zulip free?
Zulip has a free plan. Zulip Cloud Free: 10,000 messages of search history and 5 GB of file storage in total.
How much does Zulip cost?
Zulip lists 6 plans. Free: $0.
What platforms does Zulip work on?
Zulip is available on Web, macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android.
Does Zulip offer any discounts?
Zulip publicly lists the following: About 17% less with annual billing; $20 a month off self-hosted plans in year one; Free Standard plan for eligible organizations; Education pricing from $0.67 per user.
Is Zulip open source?
Yes. Zulip is open source, according to its own site.
Does Zulip have an API?
Yes. Zulip offers a public API, according to its own site.
What does Zulip integrate with?
Zulip's listing names GitHub, GitLab, Jira, Zapier, Zoom, Jitsi, Sentry and Google Calendar.
Does Zulip have a student discount?
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.
Who makes Zulip?
Zulip is made by Kandra Labs. Kandra Labs is fully owned by the Zulip Foundation, an independent nonprofit created in May 2026 when its founder donated the company to it; the announcement says there are no other stockholders.
What are the alternatives to Zulip?
The closest alternatives to Zulip in our directory are Slack, Mattermost, Rocket.Chat, Element and Twist.
How does Zulip compare with other team communication apps?
Zulip's GPA of 2.8 is higher than 21 of the 33 other team communication apps we grade, and level with 7.
Is Zulip good value for money?
ToolGPA grades Zulip B for value for money. Its paid plans start at $3.50 a month for each person, against a middle price of $7 for the category: 6 of the 28 others that charge start lower.
Could I make my own version of Zulip?
To replace Zulip you would be making chat that a whole team counts on staying up.
Where this guide comes from
The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from Zulip’s own pages on Oct 5, 2026, and the grades were given on Oct 10, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Zulip's own pages on 5 October 2026. Also tested with a demo account on 2026-04-14.
Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by Kandra Labs, Inc. Prices change, so check zulip.com before you buy.
Part 07 · About
About ToolGPA
Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
3,189
Tools graded, in 94 categories
ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.
Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.
3,189
tools graded
94
categories
426
price changes on record
579
apps priced in 12 countries
What else is on toolgpa.com
- Zulip, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/zulip
- How grades are givenThe rules behind every letter and every GPAtoolgpa.com/grades
- Value chartsWhat each tool costs against what it scores, for every categorytoolgpa.com/charts
- CompareAny two tools side by side, plan by plantoolgpa.com/compare
- Price changesEvery price rise and cut on record, each with its sourcetoolgpa.com/price-changes
- Prices by countryWhat apps cost on the App Store in 12 countriestoolgpa.com/prices-by-country
- Pay lessEvery public discount: yearly billing, students, nonprofitstoolgpa.com/save
- Keep or makeWhich tools are worth paying for, and which you could build yourselftoolgpa.com/keep-or-make
Scan for the live page
Prices and grades as they are today
Quoting this guide?
Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:
ToolGPA, "Zulip: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 5, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/zulip
Know someone choosing between team communication apps?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/zulip/guide
ToolGPA elsewhere: youtube.com/@toolgpa
See our other guides
The best-graded team communication apps after Zulip, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.
- Team Communication Insider's GuideEvery one of the 34 team communication apps we grade, compared
- Discord Insider's GuideFree text, voice and video chat built around servers3.6 GPA
- Pumble Insider's GuideTeam chat with unlimited message history on the free plan3.6 GPA
- Zoho Cliq Insider's GuideTeam chat, calls and meetings from the Zoho suite3.4 GPA
Choosing software? Every tool graded, every price dated.
Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what Zulip’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Zulip is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by Kandra Labs, Inc. Prices and plans change: check zulip.com before you buy.