Glitch-soc vs Mastodon
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted social networks options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Glitch-soc
Community-maintained Mastodon fork with extra features
VS
Mastodon
Decentralized open-source microblogging server
| Feature | Glitch-soc | Mastodon |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Ruby | Ruby |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 2,048 MB | 2,048 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 801 | ★ 50,177 |
| First released | 2017 | 2016 |
| Replaces | Twitter, Mastodon | Twitter, X |
Why pick each one
Choose Glitch-soc if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Ruby
Frequently asked questions
Is Glitch-soc or Mastodon better?
Neither is universally better. Mastodon has the larger community; both share a hard setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Glitch-soc and Mastodon free and open-source?
Yes. Glitch-soc is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Mastodon under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Glitch-soc and Mastodon with Docker?
Glitch-soc: yes. Mastodon: yes.