Compare software

ZNC vs The Lounge: catalog facts
ZNC	The Lounge
Best for: IRC users who want a persistent connection and scrollback across devices	Best for: IRC users who want a persistent connection usable from any device
Free Free and open source under the Apache 2.0 license.	Free Free and open source under the MIT licence.
macOS, Linux, Self-hosted	Web, Self-hosted
Keeps IRC sessions alive while clients come and go Multiple users and multiple networks per user All 4 strengths for ZNC Keeps IRC sessions alive while clients come and go Multiple users and multiple networks per user Web interface for configuration Module system with Perl and Python support	Always connected, no separate bouncer needed Responsive interface for phones and desktops All 4 strengths for The Lounge Always connected, no separate bouncer needed Responsive interface for phones and desktops Push notifications and link previews Multi-user support
Needs an always-on server to be useful One client connection is needed per IRC network All 3 limitations for ZNC Needs an always-on server to be useful One client connection is needed per IRC network Building from source requires CMake and a C++ toolchain	Requires running your own Node.js server IRC only
Downloadable app, Self-hosted	Self-hosted
Open source	Open source
License: Apache-2.0	License: MIT
No account needed	Not stated if an account is needed
Not stated if it works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Sources for ZNC znc.in github.com/znc/znc Catalog checked September 24, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Sources for The Lounge thelounge.chat github.com/thelounge/thelounge Catalog checked September 23, 2026

“Not stated” means we have not confirmed it. Features can vary by device and plan.