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Element vs Fractal: catalog facts
Element	Fractal
Freemium The client is free and open source under the AGPL 3.0. Element Matrix Services sells…	Free Free and open source under the GPL-3.0 licence.
Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Web, Self-hosted	Linux
End-to-end encryption with cross-signed device verification Federated, so you can run your own server and still reach everyone	Native GTK interface that fits GNOME Written in Rust
Encryption key management confuses people the first time they log in on a new device Heavy on memory for a chat app, and slow with many large rooms	Linux only Needs a Matrix account
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License: AGPL-3.0	License: GPL-3.0
Account needed	Account needed
Works offline	Needs internet
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 21, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 23, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.