Friendica vs pump.io
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
pump.io
Streams server for the social web
| Feature | Friendica | pump.io |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 84 · Excellent | 48 · Fair |
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | PHP | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,690 | ★ 2,237 |
| First released | 2010 | 2013 |
| Replaces | Facebook, Twitter |
What are Friendica and pump.io?
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
pump.io
pump.io is a stream server that lets users post activities to their followers and to the web, implementing the Activity Streams format. It can be self-hosted as a personal social networking node.
- Activity Streams social server
- Personal social networking node
- Federation support
Friendica vs pump.io: key differences
Friendica is written in PHP, while pump.io is built with JavaScript. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Friendica versus Apache-2.0 for pump.io. Pump.io is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Friendica. Friendica is the more established project (first released 2010), while pump.io arrived in 2013. Friendica lists first-class Docker deployment; pump.io does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Friendica if…
- Connects to multiple protocols
- Facebook-like experience
Watch out for
- Dated interface
- Smaller user base
Choose pump.io if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Active community (2.2k GitHub stars)
- Written in JavaScript
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Friendica or pump.io better?
Neither is universally better. pump.io has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Friendica and pump.io free and open-source?
Yes. Friendica is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and pump.io under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Friendica and pump.io with Docker?
Friendica: yes. pump.io: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Friendica or pump.io?
pump.io has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Friendica. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.