Self-Hosted Telegram Alternatives

Telegram is not available as a self-hosted solution but there are plenty of alternatives for power users and business that want to host a solution on-premise. The best Self-Hosted alternative is Element. It's not free, so if you're looking for a free alternative, you could try Element or Wire. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 100 alternatives to Telegram and many of them are available as a self-hosted solution so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting Self-Hosted alternatives to Telegram are SimpleX Chat, Zulip, Mirotalk and Snikket.

filter to find the best alternatives

Telegram alternatives are mainly Group Chat Apps, but if you're looking for Video Calling Apps or Instant Messengers you can filter on that. Other popular filters include Online, Mac, Android, Windows, Linux, Open Source and Android + Free. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to Telegram.
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Alternatives list

  1. Element icon

    Element

     785 likes

    Provides secure collaboration with end-to-end encryption, supporting chat, voice, and video calls. Available on all major platforms, it enables digital sovereignty with a decentralized design and interoperability through bridges to systems like Slack and Teams. Includes enterprise-grade SaaS.

    311 Element alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Self-Hosted
    • Matrix.org
    • Flathub
    • F-Droid
    • Cloudron
    • Snapcraft
    Video calls for desktop and mobile
     
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    12
    Element vs Telegram Comments
    Top Positive Comment
    Sam Lander
    2

    Element is a good privacy chat that you can host yourself. However, not many people use it compared to Signal or Telegram.

    calkesh
    Negative
    -3

    Element is severely lacking in uptake. It could be the best messenger in the world (and may well be) but ultimately, if I can't talk to my friends on there, there's no incentive for me to use it.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    FiTekno
    Positive
    0

    I like this because of fact its purpose is to be decentralized. however time shows as knowledge is needed to bridges be made from other platforms.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    3 of 12 comments
    • Element is Free Personal and Open SourceTelegram is Freemium and Proprietary
    • Element is Privacy focusedTelegram is not according to our users
  2. Wire icon

    Wire

     319 likes

    Wire is the most secure collaboration platform featuring messenger, voice, video, conference calls, file-sharing, and external collaboration –all protected by the most secure end-to-end-encryption.

    284 Wire alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Self-Hosted
    • F-Droid
    • Software as a Service (SaaS)
    • Flathub
    • Snapcraft
    Wire screenshot 1
     
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    5
    Wire vs Telegram Comments
    Top Positive Comment
    cityroler
    10

    always End-to-End encrypted; servers in the EU; high quality audio and video calls;

    gnudesign
    Positive
    0

    Privacy and security focused, lot of features but way behind Telegram's user experience design.

    Guest
    Positive
    0

    It is fully open source instead Telegram (server and client).

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    3 of 5 comments
    • Wire is Free Personal and Open SourceTelegram is Freemium and Proprietary
    • Wire is Security-focused and Privacy focusedTelegram is not according to our users
  4. Matrix icon

    Matrix

     390 likes

    Open standard protocol enabling decentralized, encrypted instant messaging, VoIP signaling, IoT device connectivity, and persistent data management across federated servers without central control or single points of failure, bridging communication platforms.

    170 Matrix alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Self-Hosted
    • WebRTC
    • Python
    • JavaScript
    • Go (Programming Language)
    • Cloudron
    • Java
    • Perl
    Main Page
     
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    1
    Matrix vs Telegram Comments
    LeSnake
    Negative
    11

    Matrix is a protocol used by i.e. Element, not a messenger iself

    • Matrix is Free and Open SourceTelegram is Freemium and Proprietary
    • Matrix is Privacy focused and Security-focusedTelegram is not according to our users
  5. SimpleX Chat icon

    SimpleX Chat

     93 likes

    SimpleX - the most private and secure chat and applications platform - now with double ratchet E2E encryption! Built on Haskell with Love and Coffee.

    69 SimpleX Chat alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Self-Hosted
    • Flathub
    • F-Droid
    • Flatpak
    SimpleX Chat screenshot 1
     
  6. Zulip icon

    Zulip

     267 likes

    Threaded group conversations combine live and asynchronous messaging, separating topics for organized collaboration, supporting open-source, cloud, and self-hosted deployments, secure communication with encryption, and multi-platform access for diverse teams.

    227 Zulip alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • BSD
    • iPad
    • Self-Hosted
    • F-Droid
    Zulip screenshot 1
     
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    1
    Zulip vs Telegram Comments
    PlaidRadish
    Positive
    0

    Zulip is actually a better alternative to Telegram because it has security that is hosted on public or private servers, using an open source application. This app and its features are far more beneficial to organizations as a better, more secure, more feature-rich alternative to Telegram.

    • Zulip is Free Personal and Open SourceTelegram is Freemium and Proprietary
    • Zulip is Privacy focusedTelegram is not according to our users
  9. Snikket icon

    Snikket

     10 likes

    Snikket is an ambitious project to build a new kind of XMPP-based messaging platform.

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Self-Hosted
    • F-Droid
    • Docker
    Snikket screenshot 1
     
  10. Movim icon

    Movim

     52 likes

    Decentralized social and blog platform based on XMPP, enabling self-hosting, cross-network chat, video calls, and group collaboration. Users control and migrate their data, communicate across various networks, and access services from any node while preserving privacy and open-source principles.

    95 Movim alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Self-Hosted
    Website (new)
     
  11. Flotilla icon

    Flotilla

     8 likes

    Decentralized chat platform built on the nostr protocol with support for multi-group communities, event calendars, threads, private messaging, web of trust, customizable access controls, monetization via zaps, full privacy, and white-label options for branding.

    29 Flotilla alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source (MIT)

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Self-Hosted
    Customize your space, set access controls, and announce updates.
     
  12. Tinode icon

    Tinode

     10 likes

    Fully open source instant messaging server and clients. No proprietary components or non-free dependencies. Backend in pure Go (GPL 3.0), with a command-line administration tool in python + gRPC. Clients for Android, iPhone, and Web - ReactJS (all licensed under Apache 2.0).

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Self-Hosted
    • Software as a Service (SaaS)
    iOS client
     
  13. Nerimity icon

    Nerimity

     10 likes

    Open-source chat platform providing community-focused group messaging, video calls, profile customization with animated avatars, custom emojis, tags, post creation, discovery of communities, and full source code access on GitHub. Entirely donation-funded.

    29 Nerimity alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • Android Tablet
    • Self-Hosted
    Profile Interface [PC - 2025]
     
  14. Kontalk Messenger icon

    Kontalk Messenger

     30 likes

    Kontalk is a secure instant messenger, allowing you to send and receive text, image and voice messages (other file types coming soon) to and from other Kontalk users completely free of charge.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Android
    • Self-Hosted
    Kontalk Messenger screenshot 1
     
12 of 27 Telegram alternatives