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Pidgin vs IceChat: catalog facts
Pidgin	IceChat
Free Free and open source under the GPL. The project states it is free and contains no ads.	Free Free and open source under the GPL.
Windows, macOS, Linux	Windows
Signs in to several chat networks at once from one window XMPP, IRC, Bonjour, Gadu-Gadu, GroupWise, Sametime, SILC, SIMPLE and Zephyr built in	Multi-server and multi-channel support with a server tree Aliases, popups and themes for customization
The interface is unmistakably from another era Support for modern commercial networks depends on plugins that break when APIs change	Windows only IRC is unencrypted unless the server supports TLS
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License: GPL-2.0	License: GPL-2.0-or-later
Account needed	No account needed
Needs internet	Needs internet
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 21, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 2, 2026

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