Been looking for a Google Chrome IRC Client? You’re finally in luck.
CIRC (Chrome IRC) is a IRC app for Chrome, Chromium and ChromeOS that lets you connect to and chat with people on IRC.

But what’s most interesting about the tool is that it’s not an extension or a web-app; CIRC is a ‘Chrome Packaged App’.
Packaged Apps are able to do things web-based apps can’t, including accessing parts of your computer, like network and hardware devices, media tools, etc.
Because of this additional support packaged apps are able to look and work like traditional native system apps – despite being written in the same technologies as web apps.
Features include:
- DIrect connection IRC servers
- Servers, Channels & Nicks saved and synced across Chrome instances (so no need to set-up again)
- Allows for simultaneous IRC connections on multiple devices (like Google talk)
- Scipt Support & Syncing
- Desktop notifications
For Chromebook users in particular CIRC is a must have as it’s the only non-web-based solution available. It integrates deeply into the ChromeOS desktop, with its notifications looking particularly swish in the ChromeOS Dev channel:

Commands
CIRC isn’t the most user-friendly of IRC applications. There are not shortcut buttons or menu entries to perform common commands.
Instead everything from joining a channel to leaving one is done using the standard IRC commands.
The most common ones you’ll need are:
- /server <server url> – Connect to a server
- /join #channelname – Join a channel
- /nick <name> – Changes nickname
- /part – Leaves channel entered in
- /partall – Leaves all channels
- /quit – Quits all servers and channels
Download Chrome IRC Client
CIRC is a free application and works wherever Chrome Apps do.
For more information on CIRC head over to its homepage, link hiding behind the button below.