Zulip Dev
Topics keep every conversation organized
Zulip is the organized, open-source alternative to Slack.
Wikimedia, the Rust programming language, the Technical University of Munich, and thousands of other organizations run on Zulip.
Organize what matters.
Slack organizes people into channels.
Every discussion in a channel shares one stream, so the answer you need is 200 messages up. Threads hang off single messages, and are easy to miss.
Zulip organizes conversations.
Every message belongs to a topic, so each conversation stays separate and complete, no matter how busy the channel gets.
Once conversations have names, three things change.
1. Jumbled discussions become organized conversations
A space for each conversation
Like email threads, Zulip topics create a separate space for each conversation, so discussions never get in each other's way, and a busy channel stays easy to follow.
Read, mute, or resolve
Each conversation can be read, muted, or marked ✓ resolved on its own. Decisions stay attached to the discussion that produced them.
Messages stay in context
See each message in context, and if a conversation drifts, move messages to a topic of their own.
In fact now it seems strange to me to just fire off messages in Slack with no subject – that's chaos, madness. The genius of subject lines is that you can quickly and easily catch up on the messages you missed in your off-hours... This feature alone saves me hours a week.
2. Keeping up becomes catching up
Catch up from a list
Come back after a day, or a week, and Zulip's inbox shows each conversation with unread messages. Read the ones you care about, skim or skip the rest.
Reply in place
Reply in context, even after hours or days away; your answer lands in the right conversation, not at the bottom of a scrollback that moved on without you.
No pressure to be online
Busy leaders and experts can participate on their own time, without incessant @-mentions clamoring for their attention. Follow the topics where your timely input is needed.
Zulip's unique threading saves me well over an hour a day in working with our distributed team of engineers and PMs across 7+ time zones. We tried Slack, Mattermost, and other team chat products that claim to support threading, and nothing handles synchronous and asynchronous communication so intuitively.
3. Walled-off history becomes a knowledge base
No time limits
On Slack's free plan, messages older than 90 days are hidden, and content older than a year is deleted. Zulip will never impose time limits on your history.
Search finds conversations
Because messages live in topics, search returns the conversation, not a stray line from it, and you can review old discussions to understand past decisions.
Links that last
Link to a Zulip conversation from emails, docs, issue trackers, or anywhere else; the link still works years later.
Coupled with a culture of using Zulip in an organized way, it's difficult to overstate the impact it has on knowledge management... It is the essence of good UX design.
Slack is a stream you keep up with.
Zulip is a set of conversations you come back to.
Here's how that plays out, feature by feature.
| Slack | Zulip | |
|---|---|---|
| Organizing conversations | Channels; threads hang off single messages | Channels split into named topics; every message belongs to one |
| Catching up after time away | Scroll each channel; mark as read | A list of unread conversations; read or skip each one |
| Message history | 90 days on the free plan; full history requires a paid plan | Never deleted on any plan; Zulip Cloud Free shows your 10,000 most recent messages, and older messages reappear when you upgrade |
| Search | Returns messages | Returns messages grouped by conversation |
| Hosting | Cloud only | Cloud or self-hosted |
| Source code | Proprietary | 100% open source (Apache 2.0) |
| Data export | Admin export; format varies by plan | Full export any time; import into a self-hosted server |
| Nonprofits, education, open source | Discount program | Free or sponsored plans |
| Apps and integrations | Large app directory | Fewer native integrations; the Slack-compatible webhook, Zapier, and the API cover the gaps |
| Calls | Built-in huddles and video | Integrates Zoom, Jitsi Meet, and BigBlueButton; no built-in calling |
Teams that switched from Slack
Slack's interface was too slow and clunky, and the more channels you're in, the harder it is to use. Zulip's UI makes it easy to access all the information you need.
Jon Jensen, CTO of End Point Dev
I don't like going back to Slack now. It's just not as efficient a way to organize communication.
James van Lommel, Director of Engineering at Semsee
I love the application, and couldn't dream of going back to anything else. Slack and Discord just pale in comparison.
Nathan Kaplan, Head of Global Launch Operations at WindBorne
Switching is the easy part
Bring your history
Import your Slack workspace, including message history, users, channels, and custom emoji. Follow the step-by-step guide to moving from Slack.
Keep your tools
Integrations written for Slack can post into Zulip via the Slack-compatible webhook, and Zulip has native integrations for GitHub, Jira, PagerDuty, Sentry, and hundreds of other tools.
Nothing locks you in
Zulip is 100% open-source software, stewarded by the nonprofit Zulip Foundation. Export your data at any time, and move between Zulip Cloud and self-hosting whenever you like.
Common questions
How is Zulip different from Slack threads?
Slack threads hang off a single message, and you have to decide to open one. In Zulip, every message belongs to a named topic within its channel, so every discussion is a separate conversation by default. The channel reads as a list of conversations instead of one interleaved stream. Learn more about why topics work.
What does Zulip cost, and is there a free plan?
Zulip Cloud has a free plan that shows your 10,000 most recent messages; older messages are preserved, and reappear if you upgrade. Self-hosting Zulip is free for any number of users. Nonprofits, education, and open-source projects qualify for free or sponsored plans.
Can I self-host Zulip, and what does it take?
Yes. Zulip installs on a single server with a documented installer and a supported upgrade path, and you run the same software as Zulip Cloud.
Can I import my Slack workspace?
Yes: the Slack import tool brings over your message history, users, channels, and custom emoji.
Are there mobile and desktop apps?
Zulip has apps for iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, and Linux, plus the web app, with fine-grained control over what you're notified about.
Which integrations does Zulip have?
Hundreds of native integrations, a Slack-compatible incoming webhook, Zapier support, and a full API for building your own.
Where does Zulip fall short of Slack?
Zulip has no built-in voice or video calling (it integrates Zoom, Jitsi Meet, and BigBlueButton instead), its app directory is smaller than Slack's, and fewer people arrive already knowing the product. If those trade-offs matter more to your team than organized conversations, Slack may be the better fit.
Who's behind Zulip?
Zulip is developed by Kandra Labs and the most active open-source development community of any team chat software, and the project is stewarded by the nonprofit Zulip Foundation.
Try it now
Zulip Cloud
Start a free organization. No credit card needed, and you can import from Slack during setup.
Create organizationSelf-hosted
Run Zulip on your own servers. Free, open source, and the same software that powers Zulip Cloud.
Learn about self-hostingQuestions? Get a demo, or write to sales@zulip.com.