Invidious vs Loops
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted social networks options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Invidious | Loops |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 97 · Excellent | 79 · Good |
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | GPL-3.0-only | AGPL-3.0-or-later |
| Language | Crystal | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 50 MB | 350 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal | bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 24,745 | ★ 455 |
| First released | 2023 | 2025 |
| Replaces | YouTube | Instagram, TikTok, YouTube |
What are Invidious and Loops?
Invidious
Invidious is an alternative front-end to YouTube. Contribute to iv-org/invidious development by creating an account on GitHub.
- No ads or tracking
- Subscriptions without an account
- RSS feeds for channels
- Audio-only and quality controls
Loops
The federated short video sharing platform. Contribute to joinloops/loops-server development by creating an account on GitHub.
Invidious vs Loops: key differences
Invidious is written in Crystal, while Loops is built with PHP. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0-only for Invidious versus AGPL-3.0-or-later for Loops. Invidious is the lighter option, starting around 50 MB of RAM against 350 MB for Loops. Invidious is the more established project (first released 2023), while Loops arrived in 2025. Invidious has the considerably larger community, at 24,745 GitHub stars versus 455.
Why pick each one
Choose Invidious if…
- No ads or tracking
- No account needed
- RSS subscriptions
Watch out for
- Frequent YouTube breakage
- Crystal stack less familiar
Choose Loops if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0-or-later license
- Written in PHP
- Lightweight — runs in 350 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Invidious or Loops better?
Neither is universally better. Invidious has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Invidious and Loops free and open-source?
Yes. Invidious is licensed under GPL-3.0-only and Loops under AGPL-3.0-or-later. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Invidious and Loops with Docker?
Invidious: check the project docs for container support. Loops: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Invidious or Loops?
Invidious has the smaller minimum footprint at 50 MB of RAM, compared to about 350 MB for Loops. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.