FeedHQ vs Reader by lemon24
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted rss & news readers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | FeedHQ | Reader by lemon24 |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 14 · At risk | 80 · Excellent |
| Category | RSS & News Readers | RSS & News Readers |
| License | BSD-3-Clause | MIT |
| Language | Python | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 579 | ★ 557 |
| First released | 2012 | 2018 |
| Replaces | Google Reader, Feedly | Feedly, Google Reader |
What are FeedHQ and Reader by lemon24?
FeedHQ
FeedHQ is a web-based feed reader that you can self-host, with support for the Google Reader API. This makes it compatible with many third-party mobile and desktop reader apps.
- Google Reader API compatibility
- Works with many apps
- Keyboard-driven interface
Reader by lemon24
reader is a Python feed reader library that can fetch, store, and manage RSS, Atom, and JSON feeds, and it ships with a basic self-hostable web app and CLI. It supports plugins, full-text search, and OPML import for building a personal feed reader.
- Feed reader library and CLI
- Bundled web application
- Full-text search
- OPML import and export
FeedHQ vs Reader by lemon24: key differences
Both projects are written in Python. Licensing differs — BSD-3-Clause for FeedHQ versus MIT for Reader by lemon24. Reader by lemon24 is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 512 MB for FeedHQ. FeedHQ is the more established project (first released 2012), while Reader by lemon24 arrived in 2018.
Why pick each one
Choose FeedHQ if…
- Released under the BSD-3-Clause license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Python
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Choose Reader by lemon24 if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Python
Frequently asked questions
Is FeedHQ or Reader by lemon24 better?
Neither is universally better. FeedHQ has the larger community, while Reader by lemon24 is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are FeedHQ and Reader by lemon24 free and open-source?
Yes. FeedHQ is licensed under BSD-3-Clause and Reader by lemon24 under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run FeedHQ and Reader by lemon24 with Docker?
FeedHQ: yes. Reader by lemon24: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, FeedHQ or Reader by lemon24?
Reader by lemon24 has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for FeedHQ. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.