massCode vs PrivateBin
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted pastebins & snippets options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
massCode
Free and open-source code snippets manager
VS
PrivateBin
Minimalist pastebin with zero-knowledge encryption
| Feature | massCode | PrivateBin |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Pastebins & Snippets | Pastebins & Snippets |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Zlib |
| Language | TypeScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 6,945 | ★ 8,509 |
| First released | 2019 | 2012 |
| Replaces | GitHub Gist, SnippetsLab | Pastebin.com |
Why pick each one
Choose massCode if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Mature project with 6.9k GitHub stars
- Written in TypeScript
Choose PrivateBin if…
- Released under the Zlib license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 8.5k GitHub stars
Frequently asked questions
Is massCode or PrivateBin better?
Neither is universally better. PrivateBin has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are massCode and PrivateBin free and open-source?
Yes. massCode is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and PrivateBin under Zlib. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run massCode and PrivateBin with Docker?
massCode: check the project docs for container support. PrivateBin: yes.