Kleeja vs Plik
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted file sync & storage options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Kleeja | Plik |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 75 · Good | 82 · Excellent |
| Category | File Sync & Storage | File Sync & Storage |
| License | GPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | PHP | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 50 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal | bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 193 | ★ 1,821 |
| First released | 2006 | None |
| Replaces | WeTransfer | WeTransfer |
What are Kleeja and Plik?
Kleeja
Kleeja is a long-running PHP application for uploading and sharing files and images. It supports multiple languages, themes, and a plugin system for extension.
- Plugin and theme system
- Multilingual interface
- Long-standing project
Plik
Temporary file upload system (Wetransfer like).
Kleeja vs Plik: key differences
Kleeja is written in PHP, while Plik is built with Go. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for Kleeja versus MIT for Plik. Plik is the lighter option, starting around 50 MB of RAM against 128 MB for Kleeja. Plik has the considerably larger community, at 1,821 GitHub stars versus 193.
Why pick each one
Choose Kleeja if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in PHP
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Choose Plik if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Active community (1.8k GitHub stars)
- Written in Go
- Tiny footprint — runs in 50 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Kleeja or Plik better?
Neither is universally better. Plik has the larger community, while Kleeja is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Kleeja and Plik free and open-source?
Yes. Kleeja is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Plik under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Kleeja and Plik with Docker?
Kleeja: check the project docs for container support. Plik: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Kleeja or Plik?
Plik has the smaller minimum footprint at 50 MB of RAM, compared to about 128 MB for Kleeja. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.