GoBlog vs WriteFreely
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?
GoBlog
Lightweight blogging engine with ActivityPub
VS
WriteFreely
Minimalist federated blogging platform
| Feature | GoBlog | WriteFreely |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Go | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary, source | docker, binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 277 | ★ 5,216 |
| First released | 2020 | 2018 |
| Replaces | Medium, WordPress | Medium, Tumblr |
Why pick each one
Choose GoBlog if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Go
Frequently asked questions
Is GoBlog or WriteFreely better?
Neither is universally better. WriteFreely has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are GoBlog and WriteFreely free and open-source?
Yes. GoBlog is licensed under MIT and WriteFreely under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run GoBlog and WriteFreely with Docker?
GoBlog: yes. WriteFreely: yes.