Newsboat vs yarr
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted rss & news readers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
yarr
Yet another RSS reader as a single binary
| Feature | Newsboat | yarr |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 86 · Excellent | 89 · Excellent |
| Category | RSS & News Readers | RSS & News Readers |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | C++ | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 32 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | binary, bare-metal | binary, docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,913 | ★ 4,049 |
| First released | 2007 | 2020 |
| Replaces | Feedly | Feedly, Google Reader |
What are Newsboat and yarr?
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
yarr
yarr is a minimal, self-contained RSS and Atom feed aggregator that runs as a single binary with an embedded web UI. It targets users wanting the simplest possible feed reader. It is deployed as a binary or via Docker.
- Single self-contained binary
- Embedded web interface
- SQLite storage
- Cross-platform
Newsboat vs yarr: key differences
Newsboat is written in C++, while yarr is built with Go. Newsboat is the lighter option, starting around 32 MB of RAM against 64 MB for yarr. Newsboat is the more established project (first released 2007), while yarr arrived in 2020. Yarr 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 yarr if…
- Extremely simple to run
- Tiny footprint
- No dependencies
Watch out for
- Single-user only
- Minimal feature set
Frequently asked questions
Is Newsboat or yarr better?
yarr is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Newsboat if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Newsboat and yarr free and open-source?
Yes. Newsboat is licensed under MIT and yarr under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Newsboat and yarr with Docker?
Newsboat: check the project docs for container support. yarr: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Newsboat or yarr?
Newsboat has the smaller minimum footprint at 32 MB of RAM, compared to about 64 MB for yarr. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.