Forte vs Streams
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?
Forte
open source ActivityPub/fediverse server
VS
Streams
Decentralized social server with nomadic identity
| Feature | Forte | Streams |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | Unlicense | MIT |
| Language | PHP | |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 50 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | — | ★ 100 |
| First released | 2025 | 2021 |
| Replaces | Facebook, Threads, Tumblr | Facebook, Mastodon |
Why pick each one
Choose Forte if…
- Released under the Unlicense license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Tiny footprint — runs in 50 MB RAM
Choose Streams if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in PHP
Frequently asked questions
Is Forte or Streams better?
Neither is universally better. Streams has the larger community, while Forte is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Forte and Streams free and open-source?
Yes. Forte is licensed under Unlicense and Streams under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Forte and Streams with Docker?
Forte: check the project docs for container support. Streams: yes.