ForgeRelay

Compare Named comparison

A living merge-request thread, not an event inbox.

GitLab’s official Slack app covers a wide event catalogue, slash commands, and GitLab Duo in Slack. ForgeRelay is for teams that want one conversation per merge request — including pipeline recovery — and GitHub or Discord in the same product.

Start free All comparisons

Side by side

Public behaviour, not a scorecard.

ForgeRelay rows describe the product as shipped. The other column is limited to behaviour those products document publicly.

  • One living thread per merge request

    GitLab Slack app
    A Slack notification per selected GitLab event
    ForgeRelay
    First event posts; later events update the same thread

  • Event coverage

    GitLab Slack app
    Push, issue, MR created/merged/approved/closed, note, pipeline, wiki, deployment, incident, vulnerability
    ForgeRelay
    Review, merge, pipeline, and commit-digest routes you choose

  • Mapped reviewer mentions

    GitLab Slack app
    Slack user can be linked to a GitLab user
    ForgeRelay
    Mentions the mapped Slack or Discord user on review events

  • Pipeline failure and recovery

    GitLab Slack app
    Pipeline notifications; optional “notify only broken pipelines”
    ForgeRelay
    Failure and recovery inside the request thread

  • GitHub in the same product

    GitLab Slack app
    No
    ForgeRelay
    GitHub and GitLab share routing, threads, and mentions

  • Discord destinations

    GitLab Slack app
    No
    ForgeRelay
    Slack and Discord are equal destinations

  • Slash commands and GitLab Duo in Slack

    GitLab Slack app
    /gitlab commands; GitLab Duo in Slack on Ultimate (experiment)
    ForgeRelay
    No

  • Commit digests and delivery replay

    GitLab Slack app
    Push notifications as selected events
    ForgeRelay
    Filtered commit digests, recorded payloads, and replay

Sources: GitLab for Slack app documentation

Stay with GitLab Slack

The official app is the better fit when…

  • Issues, wiki, incidents, or vulnerability notifications matter more than a quiet MR thread
  • The team relies on /gitlab slash commands in Slack
  • GitLab Duo in Slack (Ultimate experiment) is part of the workflow
  • Self-managed GitLab already runs an admin-installed private copy of the Slack app

Switch to a relay

ForgeRelay earns its place when…

  • Each merge request should own one living Slack or Discord thread
  • Pipeline failure and recovery should land in that same thread
  • Review requests should mention a mapped person, not a GitLab handle
  • GitHub pull requests need the same product as GitLab merge requests
  • Commit digests and delivery replay have to live next to review routing

FAQ

Questions worth answering before you switch tools.

No. Those event types stay with the official GitLab Slack app. ForgeRelay is built around merge-request conversations, pipelines attached to those requests, and commit digests.

Yes, as a GitLab source connection. The official Slack app on self-managed GitLab requires an administrator to create a private copy of the app; ForgeRelay does not use that Slack app.

No. GitLab Duo in Slack is an official GitLab Ultimate experiment. ForgeRelay does not add AI chat inside Slack.

More comparisons

Other named pages in this set.

ForgeRelay vs GitHub Slack app

GitHub’s official Slack app is free, official, and good at slash commands and Copilot in Slack. ForgeRelay is for teams that want one conversation per pull request — and GitLab or Discord in the same product.

Read comparison

ForgeRelay vs Axolo

Axolo creates an ephemeral Slack channel for each pull request and lets the team review bi-directionally from Slack, including /lgtm. ForgeRelay leaves approvals in GitHub or GitLab and posts a quiet living thread instead.

Read comparison

ForgeRelay vs PRFlow

PRFlow keeps a live Slack card that shows what is left to merge, and it publicly markets GitHub plus GitLab including self-hosted GitLab. ForgeRelay is the closer fit when Discord, commit digests, delivery replay, or per-route overrides matter.

Read comparison

Keep pull requests moving.

Free for up to 3 mapped people. Unlimited repos and notifications. No credit card.

Start free Explore the product