Bridgy Fed vs pump.io
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted social networks options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Bridgy Fed | pump.io |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 79 · Good | 48 · Fair |
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | Unlicense | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Python | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | source | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,238 | ★ 2,237 |
| First released | 2017 | 2013 |
| Replaces |
What are Bridgy Fed and pump.io?
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
pump.io
pump.io is a stream server that lets users post activities to their followers and to the web, implementing the Activity Streams format. It can be self-hosted as a personal social networking node.
- Activity Streams social server
- Personal social networking node
- Federation support
Bridgy Fed vs pump.io: key differences
Bridgy Fed is written in Python, while pump.io is built with JavaScript. Licensing differs — Unlicense for Bridgy Fed versus Apache-2.0 for pump.io. Pump.io is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Bridgy Fed. Pump.io is the more established project (first released 2013), while Bridgy Fed arrived in 2017.
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 pump.io if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Active community (2.2k GitHub stars)
- Written in JavaScript
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Bridgy Fed or pump.io better?
pump.io 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 pump.io free and open-source?
Yes. Bridgy Fed is licensed under Unlicense and pump.io under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Bridgy Fed and pump.io with Docker?
Bridgy Fed: check the project docs for container support. pump.io: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Bridgy Fed or pump.io?
pump.io has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Bridgy Fed. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.