Phanpy vs Takahe
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?
| Feature | Phanpy | Takahe |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | MIT | BSD-3-Clause |
| Language | JavaScript | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 100 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,472 | ★ 1,174 |
| First released | 2024 | 2022 |
| Replaces | Bluesky, Mastodon, Threads | Twitter, Mastodon |
Why pick each one
Choose Phanpy if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Active community (1.5k GitHub stars)
- Written in JavaScript
Choose Takahe if…
- Released under the BSD-3-Clause license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (1.2k GitHub stars)
- Written in Python
Frequently asked questions
Is Phanpy or Takahe better?
Phanpy is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Takahe if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Phanpy and Takahe free and open-source?
Yes. Phanpy is licensed under MIT and Takahe under BSD-3-Clause. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Phanpy and Takahe with Docker?
Phanpy: check the project docs for container support. Takahe: yes.