filite vs wastebin
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted pastebins & snippets options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
wastebin
Minimal pastebin server written in Rust
| Feature | filite | wastebin |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 6 · At risk | 82 · Excellent |
| Category | Pastebins & Snippets | Pastebins & Snippets |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | Rust | Rust |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary, bare-metal | docker, binary, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 189 | ★ 860 |
| First released | 2019 | 2022 |
| Replaces | Imgur, Pastebin.com | Pastebin.com |
What are filite and wastebin?
filite
filite is a lightweight, self-hosted alternative to file sharing and pastebin services, written in Rust. It stores uploaded files, shortened links, and code pastes in a single SQLite database and serves them over a minimal HTTP interface.
- Files, links and pastes in one tool
- Single SQLite database
- Rust single-binary server
- Simple HTTP API
wastebin
wastebin is a minimal, fast pastebin service backed by SQLite and written in Rust. It offers syntax highlighting, paste expiration, optional encryption, and a tiny resource footprint.
- Tiny resource usage
- SQLite storage
- Syntax highlighting
- Paste expiry and encryption
filite vs wastebin: key differences
Both projects are written in Rust. Filite is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 128 MB for wastebin. Filite is the more established project (first released 2019), while wastebin arrived in 2022. Wastebin has the considerably larger community, at 860 GitHub stars versus 189.
Why pick each one
Choose filite if…
- Very low resource usage
- Combines several sharing tools
Watch out for
- Minimal web interface
- Limited recent activity
Choose wastebin if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Rust
Frequently asked questions
Is filite or wastebin better?
Neither is universally better. wastebin has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are filite and wastebin free and open-source?
Yes. filite is licensed under MIT and wastebin under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run filite and wastebin with Docker?
filite: yes. wastebin: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, filite or wastebin?
filite has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 128 MB for wastebin. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.