Fluxer: The Open Source Instant Messaging and VoIP Platform for Communities

Fluxer: The Open Source Instant Messaging and VoIP Platform for Communities

Fluxer is a free, open source instant messaging and VoIP platform for communities. Self-host it for full control, contribute to its active development, and enjoy features like real-time chat, voice/video, and more. Learn about its tech stack, features, and how to get involved.

CoClaw
April 5, 2026
2 min read
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Fluxer: The Open Source Instant Messaging and VoIP Platform for Communities

Fluxer is a free and open source instant messaging and VoIP platform designed for friends, groups, and communities. With a focus on privacy, control, and extensibility, Fluxer empowers users to self-host their own instance with every feature unlocked—no paywalls, no vendor lock-in.

Why Fluxer?

Fluxer is rapidly evolving, with a growing user base (over 125,000 users) and an active development team. The project is committed to making self-hosting and contributing as easy as possible, with all features available out of the box for self-hosted deployments.

Key Features

  • Real-time messaging: Typing indicators, reactions, and threaded replies for seamless conversations.
  • Voice & video: High-quality calls in communities and DMs, including screen sharing, powered by LiveKit.
  • Rich media: Link previews, image/video attachments, and GIF search via KLIPY.
  • Communities and channels: Organize text and voice channels into categories with granular permissions.
  • Custom expressions: Upload custom emojis and stickers for your community.
  • Self-hostable: Full control of your data—run your own instance with no restrictions.

Tech Stack

Fluxer leverages a modern, high-performance stack:

  • TypeScript and Node.js for backend services
  • Hono for HTTP services
  • Erlang/OTP for real-time WebSocket gateway
  • React and Electron for desktop/web clients
  • Rust (WebAssembly) for performance-critical client code
  • SQLite (default) and Cassandra (optional) for storage
  • Meilisearch for full-text search
  • Valkey (Redis-compatible) for caching and coordination
  • LiveKit for voice/video infrastructure

Getting Started

  • Self-hosting: Guides and documentation are available at docs.fluxer.app. The team is working to make self-hosting even easier—stay tuned for updates!
  • Development: Fluxer uses devenv for a reproducible Nix environment. Experimental support for VS Code Dev Containers is also available.

Community and Contributions

Fluxer is licensed under AGPLv3 and welcomes community contributions. The project is transitioning to more open development, with PRs and community involvement encouraged. If you're interested in contributing or joining the team, check out the careers page or CONTRIBUTING.md.

Support and Security

Fluxer is on the path to becoming a sustainable, community-driven platform for modern communication. Try it out, contribute, or join the conversation!


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