Bridgy Fed vs Iceshrimp
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted social networks options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Bridgy Fed
Bridge connecting IndieWeb sites to the fediverse
VS
Iceshrimp
Lightweight Misskey-derived fediverse server
| Feature | Bridgy Fed | Iceshrimp |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | Unlicense | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Python | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | source | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,229 | ★ 300 |
| First released | 2017 | 2023 |
| Replaces | Twitter, Mastodon |
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 Iceshrimp if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in TypeScript
Frequently asked questions
Is Bridgy Fed or Iceshrimp better?
Neither is universally better. Bridgy Fed has the larger community, while Iceshrimp is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Bridgy Fed and Iceshrimp free and open-source?
Yes. Bridgy Fed is licensed under Unlicense and Iceshrimp under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Bridgy Fed and Iceshrimp with Docker?
Bridgy Fed: check the project docs for container support. Iceshrimp: yes.