Bridgy Fed vs Pleroma
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
Pleroma
Lightweight fediverse microblogging server
| Feature | Bridgy Fed | Pleroma |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | Unlicense | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Python | Elixir |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,229 | ★ 2,200 |
| First released | 2017 | 2017 |
| Replaces | Twitter, Tumblr |
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
Frequently asked questions
Is Bridgy Fed or Pleroma better?
Pleroma 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 Pleroma free and open-source?
Yes. Bridgy Fed is licensed under Unlicense and Pleroma under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Bridgy Fed and Pleroma with Docker?
Bridgy Fed: check the project docs for container support. Pleroma: yes.