Self-host, polished.
Mattermost pioneered self-hosted team chat. Then users spent years asking for a UI that doesn't look like 2015, native video that doesn't go through Jitsi, and mobile push that isn't 5 seconds late. We just ship those by default.
Mattermost got the self-host part right. We got the rest. Modern UI where theirs feels dated. Native voice and video at every tier — not gated behind Professional. Mobile push that actually arrives. Notifications you can see coming. And a perpetual-licence option you can't get from Mattermost at all. It's almost not fair.
Feature-by-feature
Don't take our word for it — self-host it free and see for yourself.
The bill, over time
5 years, 50 users. Cumulative list-price spend. Both lines plotted in €; competitor converted at $1 ≈ €0.92.
List prices, annual billing. Discounts, negotiated terms, and FX drift may vary.
Why teams choose TheChatApp
- →Looks like 2026. Not like 2015. Your team won't ask why the interface feels so dated.
- →Voice and video that just work. Every tier. No plugins. No workarounds. No extra Zoom subscription.
- →Setup in 30 seconds. Not a weekend project.
- →Notifications that arrive instantly and that you can actually see. No 'wait, did someone message me?'
- →Priced by the team, not the seat. Your 15th hire doesn't renegotiate the bill.
- →Buy it once. Keep it forever. One-time perpetual licence option on self-host — Mattermost is subscription-only for its paid features.
- →GDPR-native. Built in the EU, hosted in the EU. Mattermost is US-based.
Frequently asked questions
Is TheChatApp really a Mattermost alternative?
Yes. Both target self-hosted team chat for security-conscious teams. The differences: our UI doesn't need a polish pass, voice and video are bundled at every tier (not gated to Professional), setup takes 30 seconds — not a weekend project, and pricing is capacity-based per licence instead of per user. Plus you can buy a perpetual licence — Mattermost can't offer that.
How much cheaper is TheChatApp than Mattermost Professional?
Materially. At 50 users on annual billing: TheChatApp Cloud Business is €1,690/yr. Mattermost Professional at $10/user/month is $6,000/yr — about 3.3× more. And that's just Mattermost. Most teams also pay for Zoom (or Google Meet, or Jitsi) because the native calling plugin is either missing on Free/Starter or found limited at Professional — add Zoom Pro ($7,998/year at 50 users) and you're looking at $13,998/year vs our €1,690. On self-host, TheChatApp year one is €3,490 (€2,495 one-time + €995 optional maintenance), then €995/yr after. Skip our maintenance and the software keeps running. Mattermost has no perpetual-licence equivalent — once your subscription ends, premium features (SSO, advanced compliance, etc.) turn off.
Do I need a separate app for video calls?
No. Voice and video are built into every tier, including Free. No plugin, no add-on, no extra Zoom subscription. Mattermost only includes native calling from the Professional tier ($10/user/month) — below that, most teams end up paying for Zoom on top.
Can I buy TheChatApp as a perpetual licence?
Yes, on self-host. One-time licence, optional annual maintenance for security updates and relay. Stop paying? The software keeps running — you just stop getting security patches. Mattermost has no perpetual-licence option — once your paid subscription ends, premium features (SSO, advanced compliance, data retention policies, etc.) turn off and the Enterprise build reverts to free Team Edition behaviour.
Can I get my data out if I want to leave?
Yes — always. On self-host, your data is already on your infrastructure — export anytime. On cloud, GDPR export gives you a full machine-readable archive of messages, files, and metadata at any time. No paywall, no sales call. Your chat history is yours.
See how TheChatApp fits your team
Try the Free tier on your own server, or start a managed Cloud workspace in minutes.
Comparison drawn from publicly available pricing and documentation as of April 2026. Mattermost pricing fetched from mattermost.com/pricing. User-experience characterisations paraphrase common themes from Capterra, G2, and community-forum reviews — not direct quotations. Re-verify vendor pricing before quoting in procurement.
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