What is Chatalot?
Status: Complete
Chatalot is a self-hosted, end-to-end encrypted chat platform designed as a privacy-focused alternative to popular chat platforms.
Overview
Chatalot gives communities a place to communicate through text channels, voice calls, and direct messages -- all while keeping conversations private through end-to-end encryption (E2E). Because it is self-hosted, your organization controls the server, the data, and who has access.
How It Compares
If you have used modern chat platforms before, Chatalot will feel familiar. The organizational hierarchy is similar:
| Typical Term | Chatalot | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Server | Community | The top-level container for your group |
| Category | Group | A folder-like grouping of channels within a community |
| Channel | Channel | A text or voice channel where conversations happen |
| Direct Message | DM | Private one-on-one conversations |
Key Differences
- Self-hosted. You run the server on your own infrastructure. No third-party has access to your data.
- End-to-end encrypted. Messages are encrypted using the Signal protocol (X3DH key agreement + Double Ratchet). The server never sees plaintext message content.
- No tracking. There are no analytics, telemetry, or advertising. The platform exists to serve its users, not to monetize them.
- Open source. The entire codebase -- Rust server, Svelte web client, and Tauri desktop app -- is available for audit and contribution.
Core Features
- Communities, Groups, and Channels -- Organize conversations with a familiar hierarchy: communities contain groups, and groups contain channels.
- Text channels -- Rich messaging with Markdown formatting, file attachments, GIFs, emoji reactions, threads, pins, and polls.
- Voice and video calls -- WebRTC-based calls with microphone/camera controls, screen sharing, and noise suppression.
- Direct messages -- Private E2E encrypted conversations between two users.
- Theming -- Dark/light mode, multiple color palettes (Default, Monokai, Dracula, Nord, Solarized, AMOLED, Catppuccin), and 8 accent colors.
- Keyboard shortcuts -- Quick switcher (Ctrl+K), formatting shortcuts, and full keyboard navigation.
- Desktop app -- A native Tauri-based desktop application alongside the web client.
- PWA support -- Install Chatalot as a Progressive Web App on mobile and desktop.
Next Step
Ready to dive in? Continue to Creating an Account.