Karakeep vs Shaarli
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted bookmarks & read-it-later options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Karakeep
Self-hosted bookmark everything app with AI tagging
VS
Shaarli
Personal, minimalist link-sharing bookmark app
| Feature | Karakeep | Shaarli |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 98 · Excellent | 88 · Excellent |
| Category | Bookmarks & Read-It-Later | Bookmarks & Read-It-Later |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 29,250 | ★ 3,899 |
| First released | 2024 | 2013 |
| Replaces | Pocket, Raindrop.io | Pocket, Delicious |
What are Karakeep and Shaarli?
Karakeep
Karakeep, formerly Hoarder, is a self-hosted app for bookmarking links, notes, and images with AI-powered automatic tagging and full-text search. It targets users who want a smart digital scrapbook. It is deployed via Docker.
- Bookmark links, notes and images
- AI-based automatic tagging
- Full-page archiving
- Mobile apps and extensions
Shaarli
Shaarli is a personal, minimalist, database-free bookmarking application that can also act as a microblog of links. It targets individuals wanting a lightweight link log. It is deployed via Docker or a PHP stack.
- No database, flat-file storage
- Public and private links
- Tagging and RSS feed
- Plugin support
Karakeep vs Shaarli: key differences
Karakeep is written in TypeScript, while Shaarli is built with PHP. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Karakeep versus GPL-3.0 for Shaarli. Shaarli is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Karakeep. Shaarli is the more established project (first released 2013), while Karakeep arrived in 2024. Karakeep has the considerably larger community, at 29,250 GitHub stars versus 3,899.
Why pick each one
Choose Karakeep if…
- Smart AI tagging
- Archives full pages
- Polished apps
Watch out for
- Heavier than simple tools
- AI features need an API key
Choose Shaarli if…
- Extremely lightweight
- Easy to back up
- Can be public or private
Watch out for
- Dated default theme
- Single-user only
Frequently asked questions
Is Karakeep or Shaarli better?
Neither is universally better. Karakeep has the larger community, while Shaarli is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Karakeep and Shaarli free and open-source?
Yes. Karakeep is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Shaarli under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Karakeep and Shaarli with Docker?
Karakeep: yes. Shaarli: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Karakeep or Shaarli?
Shaarli has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Karakeep. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.