Misskey vs Sharkey

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?
FeatureMisskeySharkey
CategorySocial NetworksSocial Networks
LicenseAGPL-3.0AGPL-3.0
LanguageTypeScriptTypeScript
Setup difficultyHardMedium
Min. RAM2,048 MB2,048 MB
Deploymentdocker, bare-metal, sourcedocker, bare-metal
GitHub stars★ 11,271★ 600
First released20142023
ReplacesTwitter, TumblrTwitter, Mastodon

Why pick each one

Choose Misskey if…

  • Rich, playful feature set
  • Active development
Misskey details

Choose Sharkey if…

  • Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
  • First-class Docker support for quick deployment
  • Written in TypeScript
Sharkey details

Frequently asked questions

Is Misskey or Sharkey better?

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

Are Misskey and Sharkey free and open-source?

Yes. Misskey is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Sharkey under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Misskey and Sharkey with Docker?

Misskey: yes. Sharkey: yes.

Related comparisons