Prism Launcher vs shapez.io

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?
FeaturePrism Launchershapez.io
CategoryGame ServersGame Servers
LicenseGPL-3.0GPL-3.0
LanguageC++JavaScript
Setup difficultyEasyEasy
Min. RAM256 MB256 MB
Deploymentbare-metal, binary, sourcebare-metal, source
GitHub stars★ 10,064★ 6,932
First released20222020
ReplacesOfficial Minecraft Launcher, CurseForge appFactorio

Why pick each one

Choose Prism Launcher if…

  • Excellent instance handling
  • Very active project
Prism Launcher details

Choose shapez.io if…

  • Self-host the browser game
  • Lightweight
shapez.io details

Frequently asked questions

Is Prism Launcher or shapez.io better?

Neither is universally better. Prism Launcher has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are Prism Launcher and shapez.io free and open-source?

Yes. Prism Launcher is licensed under GPL-3.0 and shapez.io under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Prism Launcher and shapez.io with Docker?

Prism Launcher: check the project docs for container support. shapez.io: check the project docs for container support.

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