Iceshrimp vs snac
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted social networks options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Iceshrimp | snac |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | TypeScript | C |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 300 | ★ 900 |
| First released | 2023 | 2022 |
| Replaces | Twitter, Mastodon | Twitter, Mastodon |
What are Iceshrimp and snac?
Iceshrimp
Iceshrimp is a decentralized, ActivityPub-compatible microblogging server derived from Misskey with a focus on stability and reduced resource use. It offers a familiar fediverse experience with custom emoji and reactions.
- Misskey-compatible features
- Custom emoji reactions
- Lower resource usage
- ActivityPub federation
snac
snac is a minimalist, lightweight ActivityPub instance server written in C with very low resource requirements. It implements the core fediverse features without a database or heavy runtime.
- Tiny C implementation
- No database needed
- ActivityPub federation
- Runs on minimal hardware
Iceshrimp vs snac: key differences
Iceshrimp is written in TypeScript, while snac is built with C. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Iceshrimp versus MIT for snac. Snac is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Iceshrimp. Snac has the considerably larger community, at 900 GitHub stars versus 300. Iceshrimp lists first-class Docker deployment; snac does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Iceshrimp if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in TypeScript
Choose snac if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Written in C
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Iceshrimp or snac better?
Neither is universally better. snac has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Iceshrimp and snac free and open-source?
Yes. Iceshrimp is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and snac under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Iceshrimp and snac with Docker?
Iceshrimp: yes. snac: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Iceshrimp or snac?
snac has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Iceshrimp. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.