Hubzilla 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?
Hubzilla
Decentralized identity and social platform
VS
Mastodon
Decentralized open-source microblogging server
| Feature | Hubzilla | Mastodon |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | PHP | Ruby |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 2,048 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 380 | ★ 50,177 |
| First released | 2015 | 2016 |
| Replaces | Facebook, Google+ | Twitter, X |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is Hubzilla 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 Hubzilla and Mastodon free and open-source?
Yes. Hubzilla is licensed under MIT and Mastodon under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Hubzilla and Mastodon with Docker?
Hubzilla: yes. Mastodon: yes.