CommaFeed vs Winds
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted rss & news readers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
CommaFeed
Google Reader-inspired self-hosted RSS reader
VS
Winds
Archived
Beautiful open-source RSS and podcast application
| Feature | CommaFeed | Winds |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 88 · Excellent | 15 · At risk |
| Status | Actively maintained | Archived |
| Category | RSS & News Readers | RSS & News Readers |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Language | Java | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,626 | ★ 9,092 |
| First released | 2013 | 2017 |
| Replaces | Feedly, Google Reader | Feedly |
What are CommaFeed and Winds?
CommaFeed
CommaFeed is a self-hosted RSS reader inspired by the look and feel of the discontinued Google Reader. It targets users who miss the classic Google Reader experience. It is deployed via Docker.
- Google Reader-style interface
- Keyboard shortcuts
- Multi-user support
- REST API
Winds
Winds is an open-source RSS reader and podcast application with a polished interface. It can be self-hosted and offers personalized recommendations powered by activity feeds.
- RSS and podcast reader
- Polished modern interface
- Recommendation feeds
CommaFeed vs Winds: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: Winds's repository is archived and no longer developed, while CommaFeed is actively maintained. CommaFeed is written in Java, while Winds is built with JavaScript. Licensing differs — Apache-2.0 for CommaFeed versus MIT for Winds. CommaFeed is the lighter option, starting around 512 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Winds. CommaFeed is the more established project (first released 2013), while Winds arrived in 2017. Winds has the considerably larger community, at 9,092 GitHub stars versus 3,626.
Why pick each one
Choose CommaFeed if…
- Familiar classic layout
- Easy to deploy
- Lightweight
Watch out for
- Java runtime overhead
- Fewer advanced features
Choose Winds if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 9.1k GitHub stars
- Written in JavaScript
Frequently asked questions
Is CommaFeed or Winds better?
Neither is universally better. Winds has the larger community, while CommaFeed is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are CommaFeed and Winds free and open-source?
Yes. CommaFeed is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Winds under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run CommaFeed and Winds with Docker?
CommaFeed: yes. Winds: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, CommaFeed or Winds?
CommaFeed has the smaller minimum footprint at 512 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Winds. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.