Lichess vs Lix

A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted game servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.

Not the right match-up?
FeatureLichessLix
CategoryGame ServersGame Servers
LicenseAGPL-3.0MIT
LanguageScalaD
Setup difficultyHardEasy
Min. RAM4,096 MB128 MB
Deploymentdocker, sourcebare-metal, binary, source
GitHub stars★ 18,557★ 160
First released20102006
ReplacesChess.comLemmings

Why pick each one

Choose Lichess if…

  • Full-featured chess platform
  • Completely ad-free
Lichess details

Choose Lix if…

  • Fun multiplayer puzzles
  • Very lightweight
Lix details

Frequently asked questions

Is Lichess or Lix better?

Neither is universally better. Lichess has the larger community, while Lix is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.

Are Lichess and Lix free and open-source?

Yes. Lichess is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Lix under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Lichess and Lix with Docker?

Lichess: yes. Lix: check the project docs for container support.

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