RSS-Bridge vs Winds
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted rss & news readers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
RSS-Bridge
Generate RSS feeds for websites that lack them
VS
Winds
Archived
Beautiful open-source RSS and podcast application
| Feature | RSS-Bridge | Winds |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | ≈5-minute setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 83 · Excellent | 15 · At risk |
| Status | Actively maintained | Archived |
| Category | RSS & News Readers | RSS & News Readers |
| License | Unlicense | MIT |
| Language | PHP | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 9,249 | ★ 9,092 |
| First released | 2014 | 2017 |
| Replaces | Feedly | Feedly |
What are RSS-Bridge and Winds?
RSS-Bridge
RSS-Bridge is a PHP project capable of generating RSS and Atom feeds for websites that do not provide them. It includes hundreds of bridges for social networks, news sites, and more.
- Creates feeds for feedless sites
- Hundreds of built-in bridges
- No database required
Winds
Winds is an open-source RSS reader and podcast application with a polished interface. It can be self-hosted and offers personalized recommendations powered by activity feeds.
- RSS and podcast reader
- Polished modern interface
- Recommendation feeds
RSS-Bridge vs Winds: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: Winds's repository is archived and no longer developed, while RSS-Bridge is actively maintained. RSS-Bridge is written in PHP, while Winds is built with JavaScript. Licensing differs — Unlicense for RSS-Bridge versus MIT for Winds. RSS-Bridge is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Winds. RSS-Bridge is the more established project (first released 2014), while Winds arrived in 2017.
Why pick each one
Choose RSS-Bridge if…
- Released under the Unlicense license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 9.2k GitHub stars
Choose Winds if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 9.1k GitHub stars
- Written in JavaScript
Frequently asked questions
Is RSS-Bridge or Winds better?
RSS-Bridge is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Winds if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are RSS-Bridge and Winds free and open-source?
Yes. RSS-Bridge is licensed under Unlicense and Winds under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run RSS-Bridge and Winds with Docker?
RSS-Bridge: yes. Winds: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, RSS-Bridge or Winds?
RSS-Bridge has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Winds. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.