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Pidgin vs Profanity: catalog facts
Pidgin	Profanity
Free Free and open source under the GPL. The project states it is free and contains no ads.	Free Free and open source; the project accepts donations.
Windows, macOS, Linux	Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, Command line
Signs in to several chat networks at once from one window XMPP, IRC, Bonjour, Gadu-Gadu, GroupWise, Sametime, SILC, SIMPLE and Zephyr built in	OMEMO, OTR and PGP encryption support Multi-user chat rooms and roster management
The interface is unmistakably from another era Support for modern commercial networks depends on plugins that break when APIs change	Terminal only, with no graphical interface Requires an XMPP account on some server
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License: GPL-2.0	License: GPL-3.0
Account needed	Not stated if an account is needed
Needs internet	Not stated if it works offline
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.