Chatto vs Element
A side-by-side comparison of two open-source tools to help you choose the right one.
| Feature | CH | |
|---|---|---|
| Summary | Self-hostable team & community chat. | Secure, decentralized chat on Matrix. |
| GitHub stars | 896 | 12K |
| License | AGPL 3.0 | AGPL 3.0 |
| Language | Go | TypeScript |
| Pricing | Free & Open Source | Free & Open Source |
| Self-hostable | ||
| Replaces | Slack, Microsoft Teams, Discord | Slack, Discord, Microsoft Teams |
| Rating | 4.6 / 5 | 4.3 / 5 |
Chatto features
- Real-time messaging with channels for teams and communities
- Built-in voice and video calls (powered by LiveKit)
- Screen sharing during calls
- Privacy-first and GDPR-compliant — data stays on your own servers
- Self-host via standalone binary, Docker Compose, or Kubernetes
Element features
- End-to-end encrypted messaging
- Decentralized, federated rooms
- Voice and video calls
- Bridges to Slack, Discord, IRC
- Self-host your own homeserver