Phorum vs Utterances
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?
Phorum
Lightweight, mature PHP message board software
VS
Utterances
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| Feature | Phorum | Utterances |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Forums & Community | Forums & Community |
| License | PHP-3.01 | MIT |
| Language | PHP | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 32 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 67 | ★ 9,696 |
| First released | 1998 | 2018 |
| Replaces | phpBB | Disqus |
Why pick each one
Choose Phorum if…
- Released under the PHP-3.01 license
- Written in PHP
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Choose Utterances if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Mature project with 9.7k GitHub stars
- Written in TypeScript
Frequently asked questions
Is Phorum or Utterances better?
Utterances is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Phorum if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Phorum and Utterances free and open-source?
Yes. Phorum is licensed under PHP-3.01 and Utterances under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Phorum and Utterances with Docker?
Phorum: check the project docs for container support. Utterances: check the project docs for container support.