Opengist vs Ghostbin
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted pastebins & snippets options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Opengist
Self-hosted pastebin powered by Git
VS
Ghostbin
Archived
Feature-rich pastebin engine behind the Ghostbin service
| Feature | Opengist | Ghostbin |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 88 · Excellent | 7 · At risk |
| Status | Actively maintained | Archived |
| Category | Pastebins & Snippets | Pastebins & Snippets |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | Go | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary, bare-metal | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,350 | ★ 188 |
| First released | 2023 | 2014 |
| Replaces | GitHub Gist | Pastebin.com, GitHub Gist |
What are Opengist and Ghostbin?
Opengist
Opengist is a self-hosted pastebin and snippet manager where every snippet is a Git repository. It supports revisions, syntax highlighting, embedding, and access via the web, Git, and an API.
- Git-backed snippets
- Revision history
- Syntax highlighting and embeds
- OAuth login support
Ghostbin
Ghostbin, whose engine is now called spectre, is a feature-rich, self-hosted pastebin offering syntax highlighting, paste expiration, and optional encryption. It is the open-source software that powered the public Ghostbin service.
- Syntax highlighting
- Optional encryption
- Paste expiration
- Self-hosted control
Opengist vs Ghostbin: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: Ghostbin's repository is archived and no longer developed, while Opengist is actively maintained. Opengist is written in Go, while Ghostbin is built with JavaScript. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Opengist versus MIT for Ghostbin. Ghostbin is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Opengist. Ghostbin is the more established project (first released 2014), while Opengist arrived in 2023. Opengist has the considerably larger community, at 3,350 GitHub stars versus 188.
Why pick each one
Choose Opengist if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (3.4k GitHub stars)
Choose Ghostbin if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in JavaScript
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Opengist or Ghostbin better?
Opengist is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Ghostbin if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Opengist and Ghostbin free and open-source?
Yes. Opengist is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Ghostbin under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Opengist and Ghostbin with Docker?
Opengist: yes. Ghostbin: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Opengist or Ghostbin?
Ghostbin has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Opengist. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.