Synapse is the reference homeserver implementation for the Matrix communication protocol, written in Python and Twisted. It powers self-hosted, federated chat networks where your data stays on your own server and interoperates with thousands of other Matrix homeservers worldwide. Since version 1.99 it is maintained by Element under an open-source licence (earlier releases are Apache-2.0).

Key Features

• Federation: communicate with users on any other Matrix homeserver on the network
• End-to-end encryption: supports E2EE messaging between Matrix clients
• Scalable: run worker processes to spread load across multiple CPUs and machines
• Admin API: full REST administration, moderation and user management
• Single Sign-On: integrate with OIDC/SAML identity providers
• Monitoring: expose Prometheus metrics and structured logging
• Bridges: large community of bridges to Slack, Telegram, IRC, XMPP and more

Why Use Synapse?

Synapse is the canonical way to run a Matrix homeserver. It is well documented, battle-tested at scale by matrix.org, and has the richest ecosystem of clients and bridges.

Use Cases

• Self-hosting a private family or team chat server
• Federating with the public Matrix network
• Building custom bridges and bots with the Matrix API

Platform

Linux · macOS · Windows · Docker (official images)

Licence

Open source — Apache-2.0 (Foundation releases) / AGPL-3.0 (v1.99+ maintained by Element).

Website

matrix-org.github.io/synapse · Element is the recommended Matrix client.