# thelounge/thelounge

💬  ‎ Modern, responsive, cross-platform, self-hosted web IRC client

Repository: https://github.com/thelounge/thelounge
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/thelounge
Homepage: https://thelounge.chat
Language: TypeScript
License: MIT
License Family: permissive
Topics: irc, javascript, web, ircv3, chat, thelounge, nodejs, vuejs, irc-client
Last push: 2026-08-26T20:33:00+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 97/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 99, release rhythm 92, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 3858, "days_push": 7, "days_rel": 53, "gap_med": 26.0, "n_releases_24m": 3}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 6317, forks 779 (observed 2026-08-28T04:09:41.723284+00:00)

## What it is
The Lounge is a modern, responsive, self-hosted web-based IRC client built with Node.js and Vue.js. It acts as both a client and a bouncer, staying connected to IRC servers while users are offline and syncing sessions across devices.

## Use cases
- self-host a web irc client
- stay connected to irc channels while offline
- replace an irc bouncer with a web client
- access irc from browser and mobile devices
- host a shared irc client for multiple users
- get push notifications and link previews for irc
- run a public web chat gateway to irc networks

## When to choose
- you want a modern, responsive IRC experience in the browser
- you need always-on connectivity without running a separate bouncer like ZNC
- you want multi-user support with private mode and LDAP authentication
- you want a self-hosted, MIT-licensed client that runs anywhere Node.js runs

## When to avoid
- you only need a lightweight desktop IRC client without a server component
- you require a fully stable public plugin API - it is still in flux
- you need chat platforms beyond IRC such as Slack or Matrix

## Facets
- artifact type: application
- maturity: active
- function: http-server, chat-interface, websocket, auth, plugin-system, theme
- domain: self-hosted, messaging-platforms, web-development, privacy, cross-platform
- platform: self-hosted, cross-platform, windows
- tags: irc, irc-client, ircv3, bouncer, chat, pwa, vuejs, typescript, self-hosted-chat, push-notifications, nodejs, web-server, docker, linux, macos

## Member repositories
- thelounge/thelounge (main) score 97

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:09:41.723284+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-29T17:46:11.970957+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/thelounge/thelounge (fetched 2026-08-28T04:09:41.723284+00:00, sha 5f30c4cc8254)
  - homepage: https://thelounge.chat (fetched 2026-08-29T08:42:57.474934+00:00, sha c5634bb4304d)
  - site_page: https://thelounge.chat/docs/users (fetched 2026-08-29T08:42:57.488161+00:00, sha 0380a05eb8cd)
  - site_page: https://thelounge.chat/docs (fetched 2026-08-29T08:42:57.477677+00:00, sha d9841b3af09f)
  - site_page: https://thelounge.chat/docs/install-and-upgrade (fetched 2026-08-29T08:42:57.480858+00:00, sha 3bac56eb3412)
  - site_page: https://thelounge.chat/docs/usage (fetched 2026-08-29T08:42:57.483755+00:00, sha af9237bc9389)
  - site_page: https://thelounge.chat/docs/configuration (fetched 2026-08-29T08:42:57.485976+00:00, sha ee58a6dcdc6d)
  - site_page: https://thelounge.chat/docs/guides (fetched 2026-08-29T08:42:57.490096+00:00, sha 295dbef7a133)
  - site_page: https://thelounge.chat/docs/api (fetched 2026-08-29T08:42:57.491718+00:00, sha 09e4a08a2216)
  - registry_npm: https://registry.npmjs.org/thelounge (fetched 2026-08-29T08:42:57.494365+00:00, sha bafd010be759)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.