Question2Answer vs Shapado
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted forums & community options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Question2Answer | Shapado |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 16 · At risk | 13 · At risk |
| Category | Forums & Community | Forums & Community |
| License | GPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | PHP | Ruby |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,669 | ★ 527 |
| First released | 2010 | 2009 |
| Replaces | Stack Overflow, Quora | Stack Overflow, Quora |
What are Question2Answer and Shapado?
Question2Answer
Question2Answer is a popular, free PHP platform for running a question-and-answer community website. It is fast, easy to install, and supports plugins, themes, and multiple languages.
- Lightweight Q&A engine
- Voting and reputation system
- Plugin and theme support
- Multilingual interface
Shapado
Shapado is an open-source Q&A software written in Ruby that allows hosting multiple question-and-answer communities. It supports tags, voting, and badges in a StackOverflow-like format.
- Multi-community Q&A hosting
- Voting and reputation
- Tag-based browsing
- Badges and gamification
Question2Answer vs Shapado: key differences
Question2Answer is written in PHP, while Shapado is built with Ruby. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for Question2Answer versus AGPL-3.0 for Shapado. Question2Answer is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Shapado. Question2Answer has the considerably larger community, at 1,669 GitHub stars versus 527. Question2Answer lists first-class Docker deployment; Shapado does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Question2Answer if…
- Easy to install and host
- Fast and simple
Watch out for
- Dated default theme
- Q&A only
Choose Shapado if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Written in Ruby
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Watch out for
- Project is dormant
- Outdated Ruby stack
Frequently asked questions
Is Question2Answer or Shapado better?
Question2Answer 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 Question2Answer and Shapado free and open-source?
Yes. Question2Answer is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Shapado under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Question2Answer and Shapado with Docker?
Question2Answer: yes. Shapado: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Question2Answer or Shapado?
Question2Answer has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Shapado. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.