Readeck vs Shaarli
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted bookmarks & read-it-later options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Readeck
Save and read web content in a personal library
VS
Shaarli
Personal, minimalist link-sharing bookmark app
| Feature | Readeck | Shaarli |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Category | Bookmarks & Read-It-Later | Bookmarks & Read-It-Later |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Go | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,100 | ★ 3,899 |
| First released | 2023 | 2013 |
| Replaces | Pocket, Instapaper | Pocket, Delicious |
What are Readeck and Shaarli?
Readeck
Readeck is a self-hosted application that lets you save web articles and pages into a clean, searchable personal reading library. It targets readers who want a simple read-it-later tool. It is deployed via Docker or a binary.
- Clean article reading view
- Highlights and labels
- E-book export
- Lightweight single binary
Shaarli
Shaarli is a personal, minimalist, database-free bookmarking application that can also act as a microblog of links. It targets individuals wanting a lightweight link log. It is deployed via Docker or a PHP stack.
- No database, flat-file storage
- Public and private links
- Tagging and RSS feed
- Plugin support
Readeck vs Shaarli: key differences
Readeck is written in Go, while Shaarli is built with PHP. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Readeck versus GPL-3.0 for Shaarli. Shaarli is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Readeck. Shaarli is the more established project (first released 2013), while Readeck arrived in 2023. Shaarli has the considerably larger community, at 3,899 GitHub stars versus 1,100.
Why pick each one
Choose Readeck if…
- Simple and lightweight
- Nice reading experience
- Easy to deploy
Watch out for
- Younger project
- Smaller community
Choose Shaarli if…
- Extremely lightweight
- Easy to back up
- Can be public or private
Watch out for
- Dated default theme
- Single-user only
Frequently asked questions
Is Readeck or Shaarli better?
Neither is universally better. Shaarli has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Readeck and Shaarli free and open-source?
Yes. Readeck is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Shaarli under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Readeck and Shaarli with Docker?
Readeck: yes. Shaarli: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Readeck or Shaarli?
Shaarli has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Readeck. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.