PrivateBin vs Stikked
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted pastebins & snippets options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
PrivateBin
Minimalist pastebin with zero-knowledge encryption
VS
Stikked
Feature-rich PHP pastebin with API and themes
| Feature | PrivateBin | Stikked |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Pastebins & Snippets | Pastebins & Snippets |
| License | Zlib | BSD-3-Clause |
| Language | PHP | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 8,509 | ★ 992 |
| First released | 2012 | 2011 |
| Replaces | Pastebin.com | Pastebin.com |
Why pick each one
Choose PrivateBin if…
- Released under the Zlib license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 8.5k GitHub stars
Choose Stikked if…
- Released under the BSD-3-Clause license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in JavaScript
Frequently asked questions
Is PrivateBin or Stikked better?
Neither is universally better. PrivateBin has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are PrivateBin and Stikked free and open-source?
Yes. PrivateBin is licensed under Zlib and Stikked under BSD-3-Clause. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run PrivateBin and Stikked with Docker?
PrivateBin: yes. Stikked: yes.