Newsboat vs Stringer
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted rss & news readers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Newsboat | Stringer |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 86 · Excellent | 86 · Excellent |
| Category | RSS & News Readers | RSS & News Readers |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | C++ | Ruby |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 32 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | binary, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,913 | ★ 4,133 |
| First released | 2007 | 2013 |
| Replaces | Feedly | Feedly, Google Reader |
What are Newsboat and Stringer?
Newsboat
Newsboat is an RSS and Atom feed reader for the text console. It is highly configurable, supports podcasts via podboat, and can synchronize with services like Tiny Tiny RSS and Nextcloud News.
- Highly configurable TUI
- Podcast support via podboat
- Syncs with TT-RSS and others
Stringer
Stringer is a self-hosted, anti-social RSS reader with no external dependencies on third-party services. It targets users who want a private, no-frills feed reader. It is deployed via a Ruby stack or Docker.
- No third-party dependencies
- Keyboard shortcuts
- Simple unread-focused view
- Self-contained
Newsboat vs Stringer: key differences
Newsboat is written in C++, while Stringer is built with Ruby. Newsboat is the lighter option, starting around 32 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Stringer. Newsboat is the more established project (first released 2007), while Stringer arrived in 2013. Stringer lists first-class Docker deployment; Newsboat does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Newsboat if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Active community (3.9k GitHub stars)
- Written in C++
- Tiny footprint — runs in 32 MB RAM
Choose Stringer if…
- Private and minimal
- Easy reading flow
- No external services
Watch out for
- Slow development
- Basic feature set
Frequently asked questions
Is Newsboat or Stringer better?
Neither is universally better. Stringer has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Newsboat and Stringer free and open-source?
Yes. Newsboat is licensed under MIT and Stringer under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Newsboat and Stringer with Docker?
Newsboat: check the project docs for container support. Stringer: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Newsboat or Stringer?
Newsboat has the smaller minimum footprint at 32 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Stringer. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.