Mastodon vs pump.io
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted social networks options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Mastodon
Decentralized open-source microblogging server
VS
pump.io
Streams server for the social web
| Feature | Mastodon | pump.io |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Ruby | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 2,048 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 50,177 | ★ 2,239 |
| First released | 2016 | 2013 |
| Replaces | Twitter, X |
Why pick each one
Choose pump.io if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Active community (2.2k GitHub stars)
- Written in JavaScript
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Mastodon or pump.io better?
Neither is universally better. Mastodon has the larger community, while pump.io is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Mastodon and pump.io free and open-source?
Yes. Mastodon is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and pump.io under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Mastodon and pump.io with Docker?
Mastodon: yes. pump.io: check the project docs for container support.