Zulip Pricing Overview

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Zulip Pricing Key Insights

Last updated on Apr 09, 2026

Zulip offers 7 pricing editions, starting at $0. Zulip pricing tiers are designed to support different usage levels and team sizes. Zulip also offers a free trial. Compare the Zulip pricing table below to figure out the best fit for your needs. Some plans may require you to contact Kandra Labs for custom pricing.

Zulip Coud Free — $0

Zulip Free (Self-hosted) — $0

Zulip Basic (Self-hosted) — $3.50 / 1 User Per Month

Zulip Cloud Standard — $6.67 / 1 user Per Month

Zulip Business (Self-hosted) — $6.67 / 1 User Per Month

Zulip Cloud Plus — $10 / 1 User Per Month

Zulip Enterprise (Self-hosted) — Contact Us

Rated 4.6 / 5

*Pricing information is supplied by the software provider or retrieved from publicly accessible pricing materials. Final cost negotiations must be conducted with the seller.

Zulip Coud Free

Free

Best for light use.

Zulip Cloud Standard

$6.67

1 user Per Month

Your team's collaboration hub.

Zulip Cloud Plus

$10.00

1 User Per Month

Zulip Free (Self-hosted)

Free

Retain full control over your data. Zulip is 100% free and open source, with no proprietary version.

Zulip Basic (Self-hosted)

$3.50

1 User Per Month

Zulip Business (Self-hosted)

$6.67

1 User Per Month

Zulip Enterprise (Self-hosted)

Zulip offers a convenient cloud solution, with features to make your users and IT team happy. Import your data and integrations from Slack and other products.

For ultimate control and compliance, self-host Zulip’s 100% open-source software, with easy installation and upgrades.

You can move freely between Zulip Cloud hosting and your own servers with Zulip's high quality export and import tools.

Zulip is 100% free and open source, with no proprietary version. Self-host Zulip for free to get access to all the feature available to Zulip Cloud users, or contact us for Enterprise support.

Pricing information for Zulip is supplied by the software provider or retrieved from publicly accessible pricing materials. Final cost negotiations to purchase Zulip must be conducted with the seller.

Zulip sponsors free plans for over 1000 worthy organizations, including open-source projects, educators, researchers and non-profits. Education organizations, organizations based in the developing world, and organizations where many users are not paid staff are generally eligible for a discount.

Pricing information was last updated on October 24, 2024

Zulip Pricing FAQs

Generated using AI

According to G2 reviewers, Zulip's pricing is best suited for small businesses, research teams, academic groups, and open-source communities. G2 reviews of Zulip consistently show small business users praising the free and Standard tiers as ideal for technical and distributed teams, particularly in computer software, research, and higher education. The free academic plan is repeatedly highlighted by university research groups who cannot afford monthly software expenses. Mid-market teams in industries like computer software, oil and energy, and education management gravitate toward the Standard or Business self-hosted tiers. Enterprise users with SSO and compliance needs are best served by Zulip's Cloud Plus or self-hosted Business and Enterprise plans.

Zulip's free Cloud tier limits search history to 10,000 messages and caps total file storage at 5 GB, which G2 reviewers note can be restrictive for growing teams relying on conversation history. Zulip's paid Cloud Standard plan at $6.67/month unlocks unlimited search history, per-user file storage, message retention policies, custom branding, and priority support. The Plus plan at $10.00/month adds SSO with SAML, SCIM user sync, and a custom domain. For self-hosted deployments, Zulip offers a fully featured free option, though mobile notifications are limited beyond 10 users unless eligible for the Community plan, with paid tiers unlocking unlimited notifications and enterprise support.

G2 reviewers overwhelmingly consider Zulip exceptional value, with the platform earning a 4.5/5 average rating. The free tier is frequently praised as genuinely generous, with multiple G2 users noting it replaced paid tools like Slack without sacrificing functionality. Reviewers from research, higher education, and small software teams specifically highlight Zulip's free Cloud Standard access for academic and open-source organizations as a standout benefit. G2 reviews of Zulip's pricing indicate that even the paid tiers at $6.67/month are considered affordable compared to competitors. A few reviewers mention wanting lower per-user pricing for larger organizations, but these concerns are rare against an overwhelmingly positive value sentiment.

Top-Rated Alternatives

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Zulip Alternatives Pricing

The following is a quick overview of editions offered by other Business Instant Messaging Software

Slack Free	$0.00	For teams wanting to try out Slack for an unlimited period of time Searchable message archives, up to 10k of your team’s most recent messages 10 apps or service integrations Native apps for iOS, Android, Mac & Windows Desktop Two-person voice and video calls 5GB total file storage for the team Two Factor Authorization Show More
Rocket.Chat Starter	FreePer Year	Ideal for technical evaluation or small businesses Up to 50 users Self-managed only CORE CAPABILITIES, INCLUDING: One workspace per organization Channels, groups, direct messages and threaded discussions Unlimited push notifications Unlimited chat and file history Video conferencing integration E2E encryption 2FA authentication Content moderation and monitoring Role-based access control Data loss prevention Granular data retention policy Show More
Mattermost Starter	$0.00	Increased productivity for small teams Unlimited 1:1 and group messaging Unlimited users, channels, teams Unlimited boards Pre-built and custom board templates Audio/video integrations Continuous message archive Show More

Various alternatives pricing & plans

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Pricing information for the above various Zulip alternatives is supplied by the respective software provider or retrieved from publicly accessible pricing materials. Final cost negotiations to purchase any of these products must be conducted with the seller.

Zulip Pricing Reviews

(2)

Jeewantha A.

director

Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)

10/31/2025

"Feature-Rich, User-Friendly, and Fast Support"

5/5

What do you like best about Zulip?

The software offers a wide range of features and has a user-friendly interface. Its analytics are helpful, and I appreciate the quick response time. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Zulip?

The attachment size is insufficient, and I would also like to see a lower price category for organizations with a larger number of users. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What problems is Zulip solving and how is that benefiting you?

We previously used Skype, but this platform has resolved all our team collaboration issues and provides a much faster, more responsive app. However, it would be helpful to have an application, in addition to the main app, that does not require a constant internet connection, so it can be used in areas where internet access is unavailable. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

sambhav j.

Dealsquad

Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)

4/30/2026

"Zulip Review: Organized and Efficient Team Communication Tool"

4/5

What do you like best about Zulip?

What I like most about Zulip is its clean and structured UI/UX, especially the stream and topic-based messaging system. It keeps conversations well-organized, so it’s easy to navigate and find specific discussions without confusion.

Along with that, Zulip supports useful integrations with tools like GitHub, which improves workflow. Its performance is smooth and reliable even with multiple chats running at once. The pricing is also reasonable, with a free version available, making it a good value for teams.

Additionally, the onboarding process is simple, and support resources are helpful for new users. Overall, this combination of organization, efficiency, and usability is what I like best about Zulip. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Zulip?

One thing I dislike about Zulip is that its topic-based system can feel confusing at the beginning. New users often take time to understand streams and topics, which makes the onboarding slightly difficult compared to simpler chat apps.

The UI, although organized, can feel a bit overwhelming when there are too many streams and messages. In terms of integrations, while Zulip supports many tools, it is still not as extensive or seamless as some competitors.

Sometimes, performance can feel slightly slower when handling very large conversations. Also, the advanced features are not very intuitive, which affects the overall user experience.

Overall, Zulip is powerful, but the learning curve and slightly complex interface can be a drawback for beginners. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What problems is Zulip solving and how is that benefiting you?

Zulip solves the common problem of messy and unorganized team communication. In many messaging apps, conversations get mixed up, and it becomes difficult to track important discussions. Zulip solves this by using streams and topics, which keep messages properly organized.

It also helps in reducing time waste because I can easily find specific conversations without scrolling through long chats. This improves productivity and makes teamwork more efficient.

Another problem it solves is managing multiple discussions at once. With its structured system, I can focus on different topics without confusion.

Overall, Zulip benefits me by making communication clear, saving time, and helping me stay organized while working or studying. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.