CommaFeed vs selfoss
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
selfoss
Multipurpose RSS reader and web scraping aggregator
| Feature | CommaFeed | selfoss |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 88 · Excellent | 68 · Good |
| Category | RSS & News Readers | RSS & News Readers |
| License | Apache-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Java | HTML |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,626 | ★ 2,470 |
| First released | 2013 | 2012 |
| Replaces | Feedly, Google Reader | Google Reader, Feedly |
What are CommaFeed and selfoss?
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
selfoss
selfoss is a multipurpose RSS reader and aggregation web application. It pulls in content from feeds, Twitter, and other sources, presenting them in a clean unified stream.
- Unified content stream
- Mobile-friendly interface
- Plugin sources beyond RSS
CommaFeed vs selfoss: key differences
CommaFeed is written in Java, while selfoss is built with HTML. Licensing differs — Apache-2.0 for CommaFeed versus GPL-3.0 for selfoss. Selfoss is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 512 MB for CommaFeed.
Why pick each one
Choose CommaFeed if…
- Familiar classic layout
- Easy to deploy
- Lightweight
Watch out for
- Java runtime overhead
- Fewer advanced features
Choose selfoss if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (2.5k GitHub stars)
Frequently asked questions
Is CommaFeed or selfoss better?
Neither is universally better. CommaFeed has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are CommaFeed and selfoss free and open-source?
Yes. CommaFeed is licensed under Apache-2.0 and selfoss under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run CommaFeed and selfoss with Docker?
CommaFeed: yes. selfoss: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, CommaFeed or selfoss?
selfoss has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for CommaFeed. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.