Fenrus vs Mafl
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted dashboards & startpages options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Fenrus | Mafl |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 63 · Good | 55 · Fair |
| Category | Dashboards & Startpages | Dashboards & Startpages |
| License | GPL-2.0 | MIT |
| Language | JavaScript | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 790 | ★ 756 |
| First released | 2022 | 2023 |
| Replaces | Heimdall | Heimdall |
What are Fenrus and Mafl?
Fenrus
Fenrus is a personal home page and dashboard for organizing applications with live widgets and per-user dashboards. It targets households wanting individual customized start pages. It is deployed via Docker.
- Per-user dashboards
- Smart app widgets
- Built-in search engines
- Guest and personal modes
Mafl
Mafl is a minimalist, easy-to-use start page that organizes services and apps using a single YAML configuration. It targets users who want a tidy, simple home page. It is deployed via Docker.
- Single YAML configuration
- Service status checks
- Light and dark themes
- Lightweight footprint
Fenrus vs Mafl: key differences
Fenrus is written in JavaScript, while Mafl is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — GPL-2.0 for Fenrus versus MIT for Mafl. Mafl is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Fenrus.
Why pick each one
Choose Fenrus if…
- Multi-user dashboards
- Live app data
- Simple to run
Watch out for
- Smaller community
- Fewer integrations
Choose Mafl if…
- Clean minimal design
- Easy config
- Lightweight
Watch out for
- Few advanced features
- Small community
Frequently asked questions
Is Fenrus or Mafl better?
Neither is universally better. Fenrus has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Fenrus and Mafl free and open-source?
Yes. Fenrus is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Mafl under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Fenrus and Mafl with Docker?
Fenrus: yes. Mafl: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Fenrus or Mafl?
Mafl has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Fenrus. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.