What is WeeChat used for?

WeeChat is a fast, lightweight terminal chat client with a plugin architecture, best known for IRC and extensible through scripts in several languages. It is a good fit for keyboard-driven IRC chat in the terminal and open-source communities that gather on IRC.

Is WeeChat open source?

Yes. WeeChat is open source under the GPL-3.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at weechat/weechat and is written mainly in C.

Yes. WeeChat is open source, so the software itself is free to use.

Can I self-host WeeChat?

Yes. WeeChat can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure; there is no official hosted version.

What are some alternatives to WeeChat?

Similar open-source tools in the Team Chat category include Kiwi IRC, Telegram for Android and The Lounge. SaaS products in the same category include 8x8, Anonymous Bot for Slack and AutoPing.

Is WeeChat actively maintained?

Yes. The most recent commit to WeeChat was on 28 September 2026, and the latest release is v4.10.1, published on 5 September 2026. The project has 3.4k stars on GitHub.

WeeChat: open-source team chat

About WeeChat

WeeChat, short for Wee Enhanced Environment for Chat, is a free chat client that runs in the terminal. It keeps a small, fast core and moves features into optional plugins, so the IRC support and other components can each be loaded or unloaded independently. It is released under the GPL-3.0 license.

The client runs on GNU/Linux, BSD, GNU/Hurd, Haiku, macOS, and Windows through WSL or Cygwin. Its IRC plugin follows the relevant RFCs, and the plugin design is intended to support further protocols. Behavior can be extended with scripts written in languages such as Python, Perl, Ruby, Lua, Tcl, JavaScript, Scheme, and PHP, and many options can be customized.

WeeChat is written in C and is aimed at people who prefer a keyboard-driven chat workflow, including developers and open-source community members who live on IRC. It is a client you install locally, and it can be kept running on a remote server so you stay connected between sessions.

Key features

Modular core with optional plugins
IRC plugin compliant with the main RFCs
Scripting in Python, Perl, Ruby, Lua, and more
Runs on Linux, BSD, macOS, and Windows via WSL
Highly customizable interface and options
Small, fast terminal footprint

Good fit for

→Keyboard-driven IRC chat in the terminal
→Open-source communities that gather on IRC

Built with: C; Python; Ruby; JavaScript; PHP
Tags: irc; chat-client; terminal; cli; plugins; scripting; open-source; extensible

WeeChat: questions and answers

What is WeeChat used for?: WeeChat is a fast, lightweight terminal chat client with a plugin architecture, best known for IRC and extensible through scripts in several languages. It is a good fit for keyboard-driven IRC chat in the terminal and open-source communities that gather on IRC.
Is WeeChat open source?: Yes. WeeChat is open source under the GPL-3.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at weechat/weechat and is written mainly in C.
Is WeeChat free?: Yes. WeeChat is open source, so the software itself is free to use.
Can I self-host WeeChat?: Yes. WeeChat can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure; there is no official hosted version.
What are some alternatives to WeeChat?: Similar open-source tools in the Team Chat category include Kiwi IRC, Telegram for Android and The Lounge. SaaS products in the same category include 8x8, Anonymous Bot for Slack and AutoPing.
Is WeeChat actively maintained?: Yes. The most recent commit to WeeChat was on 28 September 2026, and the latest release is v4.10.1, published on 5 September 2026. The project has 3.4k stars on GitHub.