Fedify vs Hometown
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?
Fedify
ActivityPub server framework for TypeScript
VS
Hometown
Mastodon fork with local-only posting
| Feature | Fedify | Hometown |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | Ruby |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 2,048 MB |
| Deployment | source | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,017 | ★ 819 |
| First released | 2024 | 2019 |
| Replaces | Twitter, Mastodon |
Why pick each one
Choose Fedify if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Active community (1k GitHub stars)
- Written in TypeScript
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Choose Hometown if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Ruby
Frequently asked questions
Is Fedify or Hometown better?
Fedify is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider Hometown if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Fedify and Hometown free and open-source?
Yes. Fedify is licensed under MIT and Hometown under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Fedify and Hometown with Docker?
Fedify: check the project docs for container support. Hometown: yes.