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العربية Kilo vs ChirpStack: managed or self-hosted LoRaWAN network server?
ChirpStack is an excellent open-source LoRaWAN network server: MIT-licensed with no usage limits, LoRaWAN 1.0–1.1 with Class A/B/C, multicast and FUOTA, deep multi-tenancy, and an unusually complete gateway ecosystem. The honest framing: ChirpStack is a LoRaWAN network server only — it manages gateways and devices at the connectivity layer, with no application dashboards or data visualization built in. Kilo is a managed IoT application platform with the LoRaWAN network server already built in, so there is no separate ChirpStack — or any external LNS — to run. This page compares the two so you can choose the right LoRaWAN stack for your deployment.
ChirpStack is stronger when…
ChirpStack is stronger when you want full ownership of the connectivity layer — MIT-licensed, self-hosted, no usage limits and no vendor, with deep LoRaWAN mechanics (Class B/C multicast, FUOTA) and a rich gateway ecosystem. It is LoRaWAN only: dashboards, data visualization, and alerting must come from a separate application platform.
Kilo is stronger when…
Kilo is stronger when you want the whole deployment in one product — the LoRaWAN (and mioty) network server is built into the platform, so there is no separate ChirpStack to run, and dashboards, data visualization, visual rules with debugging and rollback, escalation alarms, and AI are all included, backed by an SLA instead of your own ops.
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Kilo vs ChirpStack: LoRaWAN network server comparison
The table below compares the LoRaWAN network server, the application layer (dashboards, rules, alarms), device management, data visualization, and cost.
| Capability | Kilo | ChirpStack |
|---|---|---|
| Open source | mioty service center only (AGPL) | ✓ MIT license, no usage limits |
| Managed / hosted option | ✓ Cloud, free for 5 devices | — Self-hosted only |
| LoRaWAN network server | ✓ Built into the platform | ✓ 1.0–1.1, Class A/B/C, multicast, FUOTA |
| Application layer (rules, alarms, automation) | ✓ Included | — None; delegated to integrations (MQTT, HTTP, InfluxDB…) |
| Data visualization / dashboards | ✓ Live dashboards + 3D building twin | — None (management UI with device metrics only) |
| Built-in mioty network server | — | |
| Gateway-side ecosystem | — | ✓ Gateway OS, Concentratord, Gateway Mesh |
| Multi-tenancy | ✓ ABAC organizations + audit trail | ✓ Tenants |
| API | REST + gRPC, scoped API keys | gRPC (REST via separate component) |
| AI assistant that acts, with confirmation gates | — | |
| 3D digital building twin (editor, DXF import) | ✓ Built-in editor, 60+ objects, live sensor binding | — |
| Alarm escalation chains + critical alerts that break through silent mode | — | |
| Vehicle & fleet tracking (OBD2/CAN/GPS) | 2,000+ tracker templates | — |
| Step-through debugger (breakpoints, mock side effects) + simulate before deploy | ✓ Own BPMN 2.0 rules engine + CEL | — (no application layer) |
| Device Digital Twins (state persists offline) | Device records + frame logs | |
| Cost | Free 5 devices, unlimited gateways; flat plans from €25/mo | Free software; you run the infrastructure |
| Commercial support / SLA | ✓ Plans + enterprise | Author consulting + community forum |
ChirpStack column verified against public ChirpStack pages on 2026-07-02. Spot an error? Tell us and we’ll fix it.
Choose ChirpStack if you want to self-host your network server
- You want full ownership: MIT-licensed, self-hosted, no usage limits, no vendor — the network is entirely yours to operate.
- You need deep LoRaWAN mechanics — Class B/C multicast, FUOTA, all regional parameter revisions, live frame logging per gateway and device.
- Your gateways are part of the design: Gateway OS images, Concentratord, and Gateway Mesh for relay gateways without internet uplink.
- You have the ops capacity (and the message-bus preferences — MQTT, AMQP, Pulsar, Pub/Sub) to build the application layer around it.
Choose Kilo if you want a managed IoT platform instead of ops
- You want the outcome, not the infrastructure: Kilo runs the LoRaWAN network server for you and includes the application layer — dashboards, alarms, and its own BPMN 2.0 rules engine with CEL expressions that you build, test with a step-through debugger, version, and roll back like production software.
- You need what a bare LNS never gives you: alarm escalation chains with critical alerts that break through silent mode, a 3D building twin, and an AI assistant that acts with confirmation gates.
- You run mixed fleets: mioty terminates in the same built-in network server, and 2,000+ vehicle-tracker templates cover the mobile side.
- You want an SLA and a support contract rather than operating Postgres, Redis, and an MQTT broker yourself.
Looking for a ChirpStack alternative?
ChirpStack is MIT-licensed and excellent at what it does — most searches for a ChirpStack alternative are really searches for everything it deliberately leaves to you: the application layer (dashboards, data visualization, alerting) that must come from a separate platform, and the ops of hosting the network server and its dependencies yourself.
Kilo ships the LoRaWAN (and mioty) network server inside the platform, with dashboards, visual rules with debugging and rollback, escalation alarms, and AI included — backed by an SLA instead of your own on-call. If full ownership of the connectivity layer is the goal, self-hosted ChirpStack remains the reference implementation.
How to migrate from self-hosted ChirpStack to Kilo
Gateways speaking LoRa Basics Station re-point at Kilo’s built-in network server, and device payload decoding is rebuilt with inline normalization — watch the live raw payload and map fields yourself. Keep your current server running and migrate device by device. Book a call and we’ll plan the parallel run. Kilo accepts LoRa Basics Station only — an encrypted TLS/WSS link using certificates the platform issues — and refuses the legacy Semtech UDP packet forwarder, which carries traffic with no encryption or authentication and gives you nowhere to load a certificate. Most modern gateways run Basics Station; check your firmware before scheduling the cutover.
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Kilo vs ChirpStack FAQ
Is ChirpStack free?
Yes, unconditionally — ChirpStack is MIT-licensed open source with no tiers or usage limits and no hosted paid plan. The real cost is operational: you host and operate the server and its dependencies yourself, and commercial support is a direct engagement with the author rather than a company-backed SLA. Kilo is a managed platform: free for 5 devices, flat plans from €25/month.
Is Kilo an alternative to ChirpStack?
As a way to run a LoRaWAN deployment, yes — Kilo’s IoT platform has a built-in LoRaWAN network server, so there is no need to run a separate ChirpStack: the network server, dashboards, rules, alarms, and AI ship as one managed product with nothing to host. As open-source software you fully own and can modify, ChirpStack has no equivalent on the Kilo side (Kilo’s open-source component is its mioty service center). Pick by whether you want to operate infrastructure.
Does ChirpStack include dashboards and alerting?
No — ChirpStack is a LoRaWAN network server only. It provides a management web interface with device metrics and live frame logging for managing gateways and devices, but it has no data visualization: application dashboards, automation rules, and alerting are explicitly delegated to external systems through its integrations (MQTT, HTTP, InfluxDB, PostgreSQL, and others). Kilo includes that application layer natively — the built-in network server feeds dashboards, rules, and escalation alarms in the same product.
Does Kilo have a free plan?
Yes. The free plan covers 5 devices with the full application layer — dashboards, the rules engine, alarms and the AI assistant — and it does not expire or ask for a card. Gateways are never a plan limit on Kilo: you can connect as many as you like on any plan, including the free one, and they never count toward your subscription. Paid plans start at €25/month when you need more devices, custom dashboards, rules or log retention.
How do I migrate from ChirpStack to Kilo?
Run both in parallel rather than cutting over. Start a free Kilo workspace, bring a handful of devices across, and confirm the data lands in dashboards and alarms before moving the rest. LoRaWAN gateways connect to Kilo’s built-in network server over LoRa Basics Station, using the LNS address and certificates the platform issues — Kilo does not accept the legacy Semtech UDP packet forwarder, so check gateway firmware first. Payload decoding is rebuilt with inline normalization against the live raw payload. Book a call and we’ll plan the sequence with you.
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Get a managed LoRaWAN network server free
Create an account and connect your first device in minutes — 5 devices free, with unlimited gateways on every plan. Paid plans start at €25/month when you need more devices, dashboards, rules and log retention. Prefer to talk it through first? Book a call.