Compare Salut à Toi and ZNC on pricing, features, platforms, and ratings — both Team Chat tools, Free and open source, no cost vs open-source pricing to…
At a Glance
Salut à Toi
ZNC
Primary category
Team Chat
Team Chat
Rating
Not documented
Not documented
Pricing model
Free and open source, no cost
open-source
Starting price
Free
Free
Free plan
Not documented
Not documented
Free trial
Not documented
Not documented
Platforms
Web, Android
Not documented
Team collaboration
Not documented
Not documented
AI features
Not documented
Not documented
Public API
Not documented
Not documented
Pricing Compared
Starting price reflects the lowest paid tier, not the full cost for every team size or usage level.
Salut à Toi
Open Source — Free N/A
ZNC
Open Source — Free n/a
Pros & Cons
Salut à Toi
Pros
Fully free, open-source, and federated, with no vendor lock-in or subscription cost
Unusually broad feature set for an XMPP client, spanning messaging, blogging, calls, and file sharing in one platform
Multi-frontend design lets the same account be used from desktop, web, command-line, or mobile-style interfaces
Backed by NLnet and NGI funding, supporting continued development of privacy features
Cons
Long, largely solo-led development history means a smaller contributor base than major messaging platforms
Smaller user base than mainstream chat apps, so network effects and contact discovery are limited
Documentation and interface are primarily oriented toward technically comfortable users
Now branded as Libervia, which can cause confusion for people searching under the older Salut à Toi name
ZNC
Pros
Completely free and open source with no licensing costs
Mature, stable project with two decades of active development
Extensible module system supports several programming languages
Lets multiple devices share one persistent IRC presence
Lightweight enough to run on a small self-hosted server
Cons
Requires self-hosting and basic server administration skills
No official managed or hosted version
Configuration and module setup can be technical for non-developers
Built specifically for IRC, so it has no relevance outside that protocol
Use Cases
Salut à Toi
Federated Personal Messaging — Privacy-conscious individuals use Salut à Toi/Libervia as their primary XMPP client for encrypted one-to-one and group messaging without depending on a centralized provider.
Combined Blogging and Chat — Users who want to publish blog or microblog posts and chat from the same federated identity use its integrated PubSub-based blogging features.
Cross-Network Bridging — Technical users bridge XMPP conversations to IRC, email, or ActivityPub-based networks to consolidate communication in one client.
ZNC
Persistent IRC presence — Staying connected to IRC channels around the clock even when a personal device or client is offline.
Multi-device IRC access — Connecting to the same IRC identity from a phone, laptop, and desktop without losing message history.
Self-hosted messaging infrastructure — Running a lightweight, self-controlled bouncer service for a team or community instead of relying on a third-party host.