Mattermost vs RocketChat vs Zulip: What are the differences?

Introduction: Mattermost, RocketChat, and Zulip are all open-source team communication platforms that provide chat, messaging, and collaboration features. However, there are key differences between these platforms that set them apart from each other. In this analysis, we will highlight six key differences between Mattermost, RocketChat, and Zulip.

1. User Interface and Customization: Mattermost offers a more traditional chat interface with channels and direct messages displayed in a familiar messaging layout. It provides minimal customization options, primarily allowing users to change the theme and sidebar layout. RocketChat, on the other hand, offers a more flexible and customizable UI, allowing users to change the layout as well as theme individually for each user. Zulip takes a unique approach with its conversation-centric UI, organizing conversations into streams and topics, providing a more organized and focused communication experience.

2. Message Organization and Navigation: Mattermost and RocketChat organize messages into channels and threads, with conversations displayed in a linear fashion. Mattermost supports threaded conversations, while RocketChat lacks this feature. Zulip, however, takes a different approach by organizing messages into streams and topics, enabling users to have focused discussions and better navigation between conversations.

3. Notification Management: Mattermost provides flexible notification settings, allowing users to configure notifications at both the global and channel level. RocketChat offers similar notification customization options, but lacks the ability to snooze notifications. Zulip provides advanced granular notification controls, enabling users to specify how and when they want to be notified, with options like muting specific topics or streams.

4. Integrations and Extensibility: Mattermost has a wide range of integrations available, including popular tools like Jira, GitHub, and Trello, allowing users to connect and automate workflows within their chat platform. RocketChat offers a similar level of integration capabilities, with support for various tools and services. Zulip also provides integrations but has a more limited selection compared to Mattermost and RocketChat.

5. Enterprise Features: Mattermost offers several enterprise-level features, such as compliance, data retention policies, and regulatory compliance capabilities for highly regulated industries. RocketChat also provides enterprise features like LDAP/AD integration and 2-factor authentication. Zulip, however, lacks some of these enterprise features, making it more suitable for smaller teams or non-enterprise use cases.

6. Community and Support: Mattermost has a large and active community, providing comprehensive documentation, forums, and community contributions. RocketChat also has an active community and offers support through forums and contributions. Zulip has a more focused user base, with a smaller community and community contributions compared to Mattermost and RocketChat.

In summary, the key differences between Mattermost, RocketChat, and Zulip lie in their user interface and customization options, message organization and navigation, notification management, integrations and extensibility, enterprise features, and the size and activity of their respective communities.