Bridgy Fed vs Friendica
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted social networks options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Friendica
Decentralized social network with broad federation
| Feature | Bridgy Fed | Friendica |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 79 · Good | 84 · Excellent |
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | Unlicense | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Python | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,238 | ★ 1,690 |
| First released | 2017 | 2010 |
| Replaces | Facebook, Twitter |
What are Bridgy Fed and Friendica?
Bridgy Fed
Bridgy Fed connects personal websites that use IndieWeb standards to the fediverse and the rest of the social web. It translates webmentions and ActivityPub so different networks can interact.
- Connects IndieWeb to fediverse
- Webmention translation
- ActivityPub bridging
- Cross-network interaction
Friendica
Friendica is a free, open-source decentralized social network. It connects to the fediverse and other networks, offering a Facebook-style experience with groups, photos, and events.
- Federates with many networks
- Groups and forums
- Photo albums and events
- Addon system
Bridgy Fed vs Friendica: key differences
Bridgy Fed is written in Python, while Friendica is built with PHP. Licensing differs — Unlicense for Bridgy Fed versus AGPL-3.0 for Friendica. Friendica is the more established project (first released 2010), while Bridgy Fed arrived in 2017. Friendica lists first-class Docker deployment; Bridgy Fed does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Bridgy Fed if…
- Released under the Unlicense license
- Active community (1.2k GitHub stars)
- Written in Python
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Choose Friendica if…
- Connects to multiple protocols
- Facebook-like experience
Watch out for
- Dated interface
- Smaller user base
Frequently asked questions
Is Bridgy Fed or Friendica better?
Friendica is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider Bridgy Fed if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Bridgy Fed and Friendica free and open-source?
Yes. Bridgy Fed is licensed under Unlicense and Friendica under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Bridgy Fed and Friendica with Docker?
Bridgy Fed: check the project docs for container support. Friendica: yes.