Rocket.Chat is a secure communication platform that unifies messaging, voice, video, AI, and mission-critical applications in a single workspace — self-hosted, cloud-hosted, or fully air-gapped. This documentation helps you deploy, administer, use, and extend Rocket.Chat.
Built for organizations with the strictest privacy and compliance requirements, Rocket.Chat Secure CommsOS™ is deployed at scale by governments, defense operations, and critical infrastructure sectors, safeguarding some of the world's most sensitive conversations and data.
New to Rocket.Chat? The fastest way to try it is a local Docker Compose deployment and you'll have a workspace running on your machine in minutes. Prefer not to manage infrastructure? Start with a cloud-hosted workspace.
Rocket.Chat capabilities
As a broad overview, with Rocket.Chat you can:
Collaborate with your teams: Use Rocket.Chat as a single point for secure internal and cross-company communication. This includes group and direct messages with message actions, attachment options, voice and video calls, and federated communications.
Secure your workspace: Implement additional security features such as identity management, E2EE, and role and attribute-based access control.
Customize your workspace: Extend your workspace with Marketplace apps, integrations, and the Rocket.Chat REST API. To build your own internal or public apps with the Apps-Engine, visit the developer portal.
Choose your deployment
To create a workspace, Rocket.Chat offers the following workspace deployment options:
Self-hosted/self-managed: Maintain full ownership with a secure, self-managed installation tailored to your security and compliance needs. This option allows you to host and manage your workspace on your preferred server.
Cloud-hosted: Leverage Rocket.Chat’s scalable cloud infrastructure for optimal performance and compliance. Cloud-hosted workspaces are deployed and managed on Rocket.Chat’s Cloud Hosting Service (see the hosting SLA).
Air-gapped: Deploy your workspace in a fully isolated environment, disconnected from external or unsecured networks, ensuring maximum security and control.
Choose your deployment method and follow the step-by-step guide to get Rocket.Chat up and running. Additionally, make informed decisions around your workspace with options for scaling, environment configuration, and workspace monitoring.
Getting started
Once the workspace is deployed, follow these steps to explore your workspace:
Set up your account: Create your admin account and access your workspace.
Workspace administration: Manage your workspace with advanced configuration options and user management features.
Collaborate: Engage with your users through channels, teams, direct messages, and calls.
Rocket.Chat offers commercial and community plans to suit your needs, providing flexibility in the workspace features. See the plans for further information.
Stay updated
Discover the newest features in the release notes and the latest GitHub releases. Check Version Durability for support timelines, and follow the Guidelines for Updating Rocket.Chat when moving your workspace to a new version.
Join the community
Engage with other Rocket.Chat users, contribute to the conversation, and help shape the future of communication. To learn more about the process, refer to the code of conduct and the support center.
Rocket.Chat strives to ensure digital accessibility and continually improve the user experience for all. See the accessibility statement for more information. To know about using the service, see the customer terms of service.
Explore the documentation
User Guides: Learn the basics of messaging, rooms, and calls as a workspace user.
Workspace Administration: Configure and manage your workspace as an admin or owner.
Deploy Rocket.Chat: Install, scale, update, and monitor your own workspace.
Secure Rocket.Chat: Harden your workspace with authentication, encryption, and access control.
Marketplace: Extend your workspace with apps and integrations.
Developer Docs: Build apps with the Apps-Engine and use the REST API (external developer portal).
Rocket.Chat provides two support windows: standard releases are supported for six months from their release date, and Long-Term Support (LTS) releases (starting with 7.10.x) are supported for 12 months. Hosted services and official mobile/desktop apps do not support workspaces running versions outside their support window, so keep your workspace on a supported release.
For more details, see the release life cycle, support prerequisites, and version durability.