Answer vs Shapado
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted forums & community options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Answer
Modern Q&A platform for building knowledge communities
VS
Shapado
Open-source question and answer community software
| Feature | Answer | Shapado |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Forums & Community | Forums & Community |
| License | Apache-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Go | Ruby |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary, source | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 15,635 | ★ 527 |
| First released | 2022 | 2009 |
| Replaces | Stack Overflow, Confluence | Stack Overflow, Quora |
Why pick each one
Choose Shapado if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Written in Ruby
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Answer or Shapado better?
Answer is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Shapado if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Answer and Shapado free and open-source?
Yes. Answer is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Shapado under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Answer and Shapado with Docker?
Answer: yes. Shapado: check the project docs for container support.