Top pick · highest health
Rocket.Chat
Communications platform that puts data protection first (alternative to Gitter.im and Slack).
DockerNodejsK8S
Communication - Custom Communication Systems
Open source alternatives to Discord
We track 3 open-source Discord alternatives, of which 3 currently score 70 or above on Repoly's GitHub health scale and 2 ship a Docker image. Rocket.Chat leads on health at 99/100 with 721 commits in the last 90 days; across all 3 projects you are choosing between Apache-2.0, MIT, ⊘ Proprietary.
updated Oct 2026 3 alternatives best health 99 ★ 99k combined 2,113 commits / 90d 2 with Docker
Top picks to replace Discord
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Healthiest
Health 99/100: 721 commits in 90 days, latest release 8.9.0, Docker image available.
Showing 3 of 3 tools
All 3 Discord alternatives, ranked by health
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Mattermost
Platform for secure collaboration across the entire software development lifecycle, can be integrated with Gitlab (alternative to Slack).
DockerGoK8S -
Element
Fully-featured Matrix client for Web, iOS & Android.
Nodejs
Discord alternatives compared
Rocket.Chat edges Mattermost 99 to 98. Rocket.Chat also has the largest following, at 46k stars.
The most recent release is Element v1.12.33, published 3 days ago. None of the measured options scores under 40. By stack, Nodejs (2) and Go (1) are the most common. Rocket.Chat and Element are permissively licensed. Mattermost is source-available rather than open source, which limits commercial reuse.
3 of these 3 also appear among the Microsoft Teams alternatives, which lists 2 more.
| Tool | Health | Stars | Licence | Last commit | Docker |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rocket.Chat Steady at 99 since 11 Sep | 99 | 46k | MIT | today | Yes |
| Mattermost Steady at 98 since 11 Sep | 98 | 39k | ⊘ Proprietary | today | Yes |
| Element Steady at 87 since 11 Sep | 87 | 14k | Apache-2.0 | today | No |
Discord alternatives: common questions
What is the most maintained open source alternative to Discord?
Rocket.Chat scores highest at 99/100, with 721 commits in the last 90 days, 46k stars on GitHub and its latest release (8.9.0) published 25 days ago. It is also the most active by raw commit count.
Which Discord alternatives use a permissive licence?
2 of 3 are permissively licensed (MIT, Apache, BSD or similar): Rocket.Chat (MIT), Element (Apache-2.0). 0 use copyleft licences such as GPL or AGPL, which require you to publish changes if you distribute a modified version.
Which Discord alternatives run in Docker?
2 of 3 publish a Docker image or Compose file: Rocket.Chat, Mattermost. Docker support contributes 10 of the 100 available health points, because it is the clearest signal that self-hosting is a supported path rather than an afterthought.
Is Rocket.Chat or Mattermost the better Discord alternative?
On measured health Rocket.Chat leads, 99 to 98. Rocket.Chat has 721 commits in 90 days, 46k stars and 8.9.0 from 25 days ago; Mattermost has 716 commits in 90 days, 39k stars and v12.0.1 from 8 days ago. Rocket.Chat is ahead or level on every term Repoly measures.
Are the Discord alternatives still maintained?
3 of the 3 measured options score 70 or above. Every measured option had commits in the last 90 days. None scores under 40.
What languages are the Discord alternatives written in?
Nodejs: Rocket.Chat and Element. Go: Mattermost. The stack matters if you plan to extend or patch the tool yourself.
