Friendica vs Hubzilla
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted social networks options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Friendica
Decentralized social network with broad federation
VS
Hubzilla
Decentralized identity and social platform
| Feature | Friendica | Hubzilla |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | PHP | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,690 | ★ 380 |
| First released | 2010 | 2015 |
| Replaces | Facebook, Twitter | Facebook, Google+ |
What are Friendica and Hubzilla?
Friendica
Friendica is a free, open-source decentralized social network. It connects to the fediverse and other networks, offering a Facebook-style experience with groups, photos, and events.
- Federates with many networks
- Groups and forums
- Photo albums and events
- Addon system
Hubzilla
Hubzilla is a free, open-source platform for creating interconnected websites with decentralized identity, social networking, file storage, and content management features.
- Nomadic decentralized identity
- Social networking and CMS
- Cloud file storage
- Fine-grained permissions
Friendica vs Hubzilla: key differences
Both projects are written in PHP. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Friendica versus MIT for Hubzilla. Friendica is the more established project (first released 2010), while Hubzilla arrived in 2015. Friendica has the considerably larger community, at 1,690 GitHub stars versus 380.
Why pick each one
Choose Friendica if…
- Connects to multiple protocols
- Facebook-like experience
Watch out for
- Dated interface
- Smaller user base
Choose Hubzilla if…
- Unique nomadic identity
- Very feature-rich
Watch out for
- Complex to learn
- Niche community
Frequently asked questions
Is Friendica or Hubzilla better?
Friendica is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider Hubzilla if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Friendica and Hubzilla free and open-source?
Yes. Friendica is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Hubzilla under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Friendica and Hubzilla with Docker?
Friendica: yes. Hubzilla: yes.