Zulip

What is Zulip

Zulip is an open source team chat application that combines real-time messaging with persistent, topic-based threading. Unlike conventional chat apps that present conversations as flat channels, Zulip structures communication into streams and topics, allowing users to follow, mute, and reply to specific conversations without losing context. The project is developed and maintained by the Zulip community and Kandra Labs, Inc., and is available both as a self-hosted server and a managed cloud service.

Zulip is designed to support distributed teams and asynchronous workflows. Its threading model reduces noise in large groups by making it easy to surface only the conversations relevant to an individual at any moment. The software includes standard collaboration features—search, file sharing, integrations, notifications, and access control—while emphasizing message organization and long-lived context.

Because Zulip is available as 100% open source software, organizations can choose to run their own instance for full data control or use the hosted offering to reduce operational overhead. The dual availability is common for teams that need regulatory compliance or specific on-premises policies as well as for teams that prefer a cloud-managed solution.

Zulip features

What does Zulip do?

Zulip structures team communication into streams (high-level channels) and topics (sub-conversations beneath streams). This approach lets team members scan an inbox of unread conversations, reply inline to a specific topic, and keep threads coherent over time. Key functional areas include message threading, searchable history, integrations with external tools, programmatic APIs, mobile and desktop clients, and administrative controls.

Core features include persistent threaded conversations, fine-grained notification settings, full-text search, message editing and history, reactions, code snippets with syntax highlighting, and file uploads. Zulip supports both direct messages and multi-user private streams, and it can host integrations such as CI notifications, issue trackers, and calendar alerts.

On the administration side, Zulip offers user management, authentication options (including LDAP/SSO), export and import tools, and configuration for data retention and auditing. The platform also exposes APIs and webhooks to automate workflows and integrate with existing toolchains.

Zulip pricing

Zulip offers flexible pricing tailored to different business needs, from individual users to enterprise teams. Their pricing structure typically includes monthly and annual billing options with discounts for yearly commitments and options for both managed cloud hosting and self-hosted deployments. In practice, organizations can choose the Free Plan for basic cloud usage, or pick higher tiers—Starter, Professional, and Enterprise—for expanded features, user counts, and enterprise-grade controls.

When evaluating costs, account for the differences between the cloud service (which includes hosting and maintenance) and the self-hosted model (which requires infrastructure and operational overhead). Self-hosted deployments avoid per-seat cloud fees but incur costs for servers, backups, updates, and admin time. Enterprise customers typically negotiate volume discounts, dedicated support, and SLAs.

For the most accurate and up-to-date pricing details including monthly vs annual rates, seat-based costs, and enterprise options, check Zulip’s official pricing page. Visit their official pricing page for the most current information.

How much is Zulip per month

Zulip offers competitive pricing plans designed for different team sizes. Monthly billing is commonly available for the hosted service, but exact per-user monthly rates and tier definitions are published on Zulip’s pricing page and change over time. Organizations choosing the self-hosted route do not pay per-user hosting fees but should include infrastructure and administration costs when calculating monthly expenses.

Cost comparisons should consider storage, message retention, support level, and the number of integrations required. For teams that expect steady usage, annual plans often offer percentage savings versus month-to-month billing; the specific savings are listed on Zulip’s pricing page.

Refer to Zulip’s official pricing page for current monthly rates and billing options.

How much is Zulip per year

Zulip offers flexible annual billing options that usually include discounts relative to monthly billing. Annual plans are commonly set up for hosted deployments and can lower the effective per-user cost while adding predictable budgeting benefits. For self-hosted instances there is no annual per-user hosting fee from Zulip, but organizations should budget for annual maintenance, upgrades, and hardware or cloud costs.

Enterprises that buy annual subscriptions often receive additional benefits such as priority support, single sign-on integrations, and onboarding assistance. The exact yearly price per seat depends on the selected tier and negotiated terms.

Check Zulip’s official pricing page for the latest annual pricing and any available volume discounts.

How much is Zulip in general

Zulip pricing ranges from a free self-hosted option to paid hosted plans designed for teams and enterprises. The total cost of ownership depends on whether you choose the cloud service (managed hosting and support) or self-hosted installation (infrastructure and operations). Key cost drivers include number of users, retention and storage needs, compliance requirements, and support level.

To estimate budgeting, account for subscription fees (for managed hosting), infrastructure and staffing costs (for self-hosting), and integration or migration expenses. Many organizations perform a pilot on the Free Plan and then scale to a paid tier after measuring usage and feature needs.

For detailed rate cards and to compute exact monthly and annual costs, visit Zulip’s official pricing page. Visit their official pricing page for the most current information.

What is Zulip used for

Zulip is used to coordinate work across distributed teams where asynchronous communication and context retention matter. It suits engineering teams that need threaded discussions for code reviews and CI notifications, research groups that need to preserve discussion topics over months, and support or community teams that must manage many parallel conversations without losing thread context.

Typical uses include running standups in topic threads, collecting design feedback in discrete conversation topics, routing alerts from monitoring systems into dedicated streams, and creating searchable knowledge archives from long-running discussions. Because Zulip organizes messages by topic, it is often more manageable than flat-channel chat when dozens or hundreds of conversations occur daily.

Organizations also use Zulip for public developer communities and open source project coordination: self-hosted instances can be configured for community moderation and archives, while the cloud offering simplifies onboarding and reduces infrastructure overhead.

Pros and cons of Zulip

Zulip’s strengths are its structured threading model, open source codebase, and flexibility between self-hosted and cloud options. Threading by topic reduces cognitive load for users who join large teams, and the persistent inbox metaphor helps ensure important threads aren’t missed. The open source license allows organizations to inspect, modify, and self-host the software for compliance or customization requirements.

On the downside, Zulip’s threading model requires some discipline and a small learning curve for users accustomed to flat chat apps. The stream/topic approach is powerful, but teams that prefer simple, conversation-based chat may find it different at first. Additionally, self-hosting requires operational investment—patching, backups, and scaling are the organization’s responsibility.

Feature gaps relative to competitors can include fewer built-in advanced workspace apps and a smaller marketplace of third-party add-ons than the largest commercial platforms. However, Zulip’s API and integrations make it straightforward to connect the platform with CI/CD, issue trackers, and notification systems.

Zulip free trial

Zulip’s hosted offering typically allows teams to start without long-term commitment by providing a Free Plan or trial access tier. The cloud free tier is suitable for small teams and for evaluating how the threading model fits your workflows. For self-hosted users, the open source codebase can be deployed immediately for unrestricted evaluation provided you have infrastructure to run it.

For teams interested in evaluating premium features, Zulip’s hosted service may provide a time-limited trial or a staged upgrade path to higher tiers. The trial period and feature availability are documented on the pricing page and in the hosted product’s signup flow.

To confirm current trial availability and terms, consult Zulip’s official pricing page and the hosted signup experience. Visit their official pricing page for the most current information.

Is Zulip free

Yes, Zulip can be used for free. The software itself is open source and can be self-hosted without licensing fees, and the hosted service typically includes a Free Plan for small teams or evaluation. The free offering is suitable for individuals, small teams, and open source communities that can tolerate the limits imposed on hosted feature tiers.

That said, choosing between self-hosted and hosted will determine where costs lie: self-hosted deployments incur infrastructure and administrative costs, while hosted subscriptions cover hosting and support. Many organizations start with the free cloud tier or a self-hosted instance and upgrade to paid tiers as their needs grow.

For exact limits of the free tier and what paid tiers add, see Zulip’s official pricing page. Visit their official pricing page for current details.

Zulip API

Zulip exposes a documented REST API and realtime APIs that enable bots, integrations, and custom tooling. The API supports sending messages, creating streams, managing users, uploading attachments, and retrieving message history. The real-time layer can be accessed via WebSockets for event-driven integrations such as CI notifications and custom bot listeners.

Developers use Zulip’s API to implement automation (e.g., posting alerts from monitoring systems), building chat bots, syncing messages with ticketing systems, and adding custom commands. Authentication typically uses API keys or OAuth2 where supported, and rate limits are documented in the API reference.

Detailed technical documentation and examples are available in Zulip’s comprehensive developer resources. See Zulip’s API documentation for endpoints, code samples, and SDKs for multiple languages.

10 Zulip alternatives

Paid alternatives to Zulip

• Slack — Widely used commercial team chat with channels, threads, a large app marketplace, and advanced enterprise features. Slack emphasizes integrations and has extensive third-party apps.
• Microsoft Teams — Integrated tightly with Microsoft 365, Teams provides chat, meetings, and document collaboration suited to organizations already on Microsoft infrastructure.
• Discord — Popular for large communities and low-latency voice chat; Discord offers channels, roles, and rich media capabilities often used by developer communities and informal teams.
• Twist — Focuses on asynchronous, thread-first communication with a simpler experience for teams that prioritize focused discussion over real-time chat.
• Rocket.Chat Cloud — Commercial cloud offering from the Rocket.Chat project with hosted options and enterprise support; appeals to teams seeking alternative hosted solutions with self-hosting parity.
• Workplace from Meta — Social-network-style enterprise collaboration tool that integrates with the Facebook ecosystem and focuses on company-wide communication.
• Flock — Team messaging with task management and native integrations targeted at small-to-medium businesses.

Open source alternatives to Zulip

• Mattermost — An open source Slack-like platform with self-hosting options and enterprise features; strong for organizations that require strict data control.
• Rocket.Chat — Open source chat server with real-time messaging, voice/video capabilities, and a hosted cloud option; extensible and customizable.
• Matrix / Element — Matrix is an open standard for decentralized communication; Element is a popular client. Suited for federated, secure messaging and interoperability.
• Jitsi + chat integrations — While primarily a video conferencing project, Jitsi can be combined with self-hosted chat tools for a complete communication stack.

Frequently asked questions about Zulip

What is Zulip used for?

Zulip is used for organized, topic-based team communication. It helps distributed teams manage asynchronous conversations by grouping messages into streams and topics so discussions stay contextual and searchable. Teams use it for engineering coordination, research collaboration, community support, and long-lived threaded discussions.

How does Zulip handle threading?

Zulip implements threading via streams and topics. Each message belongs to a stream and a topic, so replies stay attached to a specific conversation. This reduces cross-talk in busy channels and makes it easier to follow particular threads without losing broader context.

Does Zulip offer a free plan?

Yes, Zulip can be used for free. The software itself is open source for self-hosting, and the hosted offering typically includes a Free Plan for smaller teams or evaluation with limits on certain features. For exact limits, see Zulip’s official pricing page.

Can I self-host Zulip?

Yes, Zulip is open source and can be self-hosted. Organizations can deploy the Zulip server on their own infrastructure to retain full control over data, authentication, and compliance. Self-hosting requires operational effort for upgrades, backups, and scaling.

Is there a Zulip API for integrations?

Yes, Zulip provides a REST API and real-time APIs. The API supports posting messages, user and stream management, attachments, and bot accounts. See Zulip’s API documentation for endpoints and client libraries.

How secure is Zulip?

Zulip provides security controls suitable for business use. The platform supports secure transport (HTTPS), authentication options such as LDAP and SSO for hosted or on-premises deployments, and administrative controls over access and retention. For specifics on certifications and security practices, consult Zulip’s security overview.

Why choose Zulip over Slack?

Zulip’s topic-threading model is the main differentiator. While Slack organizes conversations primarily by channels with optional threads, Zulip’s stream/topic approach treats sub-conversations as first-class objects, which improves clarity for asynchronous work. Additionally, Zulip’s open source model allows self-hosting and customization that some organizations require.

When should a team pick Zulip?

Choose Zulip when asynchronous communication and threaded context matter. Teams that frequently juggle many parallel discussions—open source projects, engineering teams with CI notifications, academic research groups—benefit from Zulip’s structured conversation model and persistent inbox.

Where can I find Zulip documentation?

Zulip’s documentation is available online. The official docs cover administration, developer APIs, user guides, and migration tools. See Zulip’s documentation hub at Zulip’s official docs site for setup instructions and best practices.

Does Zulip have a careers page?

Yes, Zulip periodically lists positions and hiring opportunities. The Zulip project and Kandra Labs, Inc. may post openings for engineering, community, and support roles; check Zulip’s website and company pages for the latest job listings.

Is there a Zulip affiliate program?

Zulip does not widely publicize a standard affiliate program. Partnerships and reseller agreements are typically handled through direct sales or enterprise arrangements. Organizations interested in partnership opportunities should contact Zulip through the commercial channels listed on their site.

zulip careers

Zulip and its maintainers occasionally hire engineers, community managers, and support staff. Open roles are often listed on Zulip’s website and company pages when available. For community contributors, the open source project accepts code, documentation, and translation contributions, which can be a pathway to deeper involvement.

Community contributors typically engage through Zulip’s own chat, issue trackers, and GitHub repositories. For formal employment opportunities, watch Zulip’s public job listings and the project’s blog or announcements.

zulip affiliate

Zulip’s commercial relationships vary: some organizations resell managed services or provide migration and support offerings based on Zulip. Formal affiliate or reseller programs are generally discussed through Zulip’s business contact channels rather than a public affiliate portal.

For partnership inquiries and reseller discussions, refer to Zulip’s commercial pages or contact their sales team through the links on Zulip’s site.

Where to find zulip reviews

Independent reviews of Zulip appear on software directories, developer blogs, and open source community forums. Look for user reviews on major SaaS review sites and for technical evaluations in engineering blogs that compare chat platforms for developer and academic workflows.

For hands-on assessment, run a self-hosted instance or sign up for the hosted Free Plan to evaluate how the threading model and integrations meet your team’s needs. Also consult case studies and community testimonials often linked from Zulip’s resources pages.

Resources

• Zulip’s features page: https://zulip.com/features
• Zulip’s official pricing page: https://zulip.com/pricing
• Zulip’s API documentation: https://zulip.com/docs/api
• Zulip’s security overview: https://zulip.com/security

These resources provide product details, administration guides, and developer references to support evaluation and deployment.

FOR USERS

Personal Use: Individual contributors and small teams can use Zulip to manage asynchronous discussions, preserve knowledge in topic threads, and integrate with development tools. The client apps for desktop and mobile let users follow an inbox of unread topics and prioritize what to read next.

Team Features: Teams benefit from stream/topic organization, searchable archives, searchable code snippets, integrations with CI and trackers, and notification controls tailored to asynchronous work. Users can pin important streams, set per-stream notification rules, and use keyboard shortcuts for rapid navigation.

Getting started: New users can join a hosted workspace or install the server for self-hosting. Zulip’s documentation includes tutorials for sending messages, creating streams and topics, and configuring notifications. See Zulip’s official docs for step-by-step guides.

FOR ADMINISTRATORS

Deployment options: Administrators can choose self-hosted installations (suitable for regulatory control) or the hosted cloud service (to reduce operational burden). Self-hosting requires managing backups, upgrades, and scaling; the hosted service handles infrastructure and updates.

User and security management: Zulip provides authentication integrations such as LDAP and SSO, role-based permissions, data export tools, and retention configuration. Admins can audit activity, manage stream visibility, and configure access for public or private communities.

Operational considerations: When self-hosting, plan for monitoring, backup retention, software upgrades, and capacity planning for message volume and attachments. For hosted deployments, validate SLAs, support levels, and data residency options with Zulip’s commercial team.

Product

Zulip is a threaded chat product available as open source software and as a hosted cloud service. It focuses on topic-based message organization to reduce noise and maintain long-term conversation context across distributed teams. The product is suitable for engineering, research, education, community moderation, and business operations where asynchronous communication is frequent.

OVERVIEW

Zulip provides clients for macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, and Android, plus a web client. The central conceptual model—streams and topics—helps teams manage many parallel conversations. Administrators choose between self-hosted or hosted options depending on compliance and operational preferences.

FEATURES

Feature highlights cover threaded topics, unread inbox, robust search, integrations, APIs, multi-platform clients, and admin controls for authentication and data management. The platform balances developer-centric features like code snippets and bot support with community and business needs such as moderation and auditing.

USE CASES

Zulip is used for engineering coordination with CI/issue integrations, academic collaboration for persistent threaded discussions, community support for archived problem-solving threads, and company-wide comms where topic separation reduces noise. The structured model supports asynchronous heavy workflows.

Case Studies

Several organizations and open source projects have reported improved signal-to-noise and easier onboarding after adopting Zulip. Case studies commonly cite faster thread resolution, better tracking of decisions in topic history, and reduced meeting load. For published customer stories, review Zulip’s site and community blogs for detailed accounts.

BUSINESS

Businesses choose Zulip when they need threaded, searchable communication with options for self-hosting. The hosted service reduces operational overhead, while the self-hosted route supports compliance, custom integrations, and internal tooling. Evaluate vendor SLAs, single sign-on options, and support plans when sizing for enterprise deployment.

EDUCATION and RESEARCH

Academic groups use Zulip to run course discussion streams, research collaborations, and project coordination. The topic model helps instructors and students separate lectures, assignments, and project discussions while preserving archives for future cohorts. Open source research projects often prefer self-hosting to maintain data control.

OPEN SOURCE and COMMUNITIES

Zulip’s open source nature fosters community contribution and transparency. Open source projects adopt Zulip to host developer discussion, triage issues, and coordinate releases. The ability to self-host and customize makes Zulip a common choice for community-driven software projects.

FOR USERS

End users benefit from threaded conversations, cross-platform clients, integrations, and a searchable history for knowledge recovery. Users should learn the stream/topic conventions, set notification preferences to match working hours, and use integrations to route important alerts into dedicated streams.

FOR ADMINISTRATORS

Administrators must plan deployments (cloud vs self-hosted), authentication integrations, backup and retention policies, and user provisioning workflows. The Zulip docs and support channels include detailed guidance for scaling, upgrading, and securing installations.