Free, open-source alternatives to Discord
Voice and text chat for communities. 5 apps you can run yourself instead of Discord, sorted by how well they replace it. Each one is open source, so your data stays with you.
FluxerBest match
Instant messaging and VoIP platform built for friends, groups, and communities (alternative to Discord).
Stoat
Stoat is a user-first chat platform built with modern web technologies.
Element
Fully-featured Matrix client for Web, iOS & Android.
Rocket.Chat
Communications platform that puts data protection first (alternative to Gitter.im and Slack).
Mumble
Low-latency, high quality voice/text chat software.
Side by side
| App | Stars | License | Activity | Runs on |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fluxer | 10,564 | AGPL-3.0 | Docker | |
| Stoat | 2,677 | AGPL-3.0, MIT | Rust | |
| Element | 13,561 | Apache-2.0 | Node.js | |
| Rocket.Chat | 46,248 | MIT | Node.js, Docker, Kubernetes | |
| Mumble | 8,335 | BSD-3-Clause | C++, Debian packages |
Why replace Discord?
Discord works, but your data lives in someone else's account, the price can change at any time, and features can disappear. An open-source app you run yourself is yours: you choose where it runs, who can see the data, and when to update.
Questions
What is the best free alternative to Discord?
Fluxer is the closest open-source replacement for Discord in our list. Stoat and Element are worth a look too, depending on what you need.
Can I self-host an alternative to Discord?
Yes. All 5 apps on this page are open source and can run on your own server, usually with Docker, or on a managed host that installs them for you.