Sharkey vs ActivityPub for WordPress
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted social networks options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Sharkey | ActivityPub for WordPress |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Category | Social Networks | Social Networks |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | TypeScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 2,048 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 600 | ★ 583 |
| First released | 2023 | 2019 |
| Replaces | Twitter, Mastodon | Twitter, Medium |
What are Sharkey and ActivityPub for WordPress?
Sharkey
Sharkey is a feature-rich fork of Misskey that adds quote posts, improved moderation, and additional customization for fediverse instances. It supports a rich timeline with reactions and drive file storage.
- Quote posts and reactions
- Drive file storage
- Extensive customization
- Improved moderation
ActivityPub for WordPress
The ActivityPub plugin lets a self-hosted WordPress site federate with the fediverse, so people can follow blog posts from Mastodon and other ActivityPub software. It also delivers comments back as replies.
- Federates WordPress posts
- Follow blogs from Mastodon
- Comments as replies
- Official Automattic plugin
Sharkey vs ActivityPub for WordPress: key differences
Sharkey is written in TypeScript, while ActivityPub for WordPress is built with PHP. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Sharkey versus MIT for ActivityPub for WordPress. ActivityPub for WordPress is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 2,048 MB for Sharkey. ActivityPub for WordPress is the more established project (first released 2019), while Sharkey arrived in 2023. Sharkey lists first-class Docker deployment; ActivityPub for WordPress does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Sharkey if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in TypeScript
Choose ActivityPub for WordPress if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in PHP
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Sharkey or ActivityPub for WordPress better?
Neither is universally better. Sharkey has the larger community, while ActivityPub for WordPress is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Sharkey and ActivityPub for WordPress free and open-source?
Yes. Sharkey is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and ActivityPub for WordPress under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Sharkey and ActivityPub for WordPress with Docker?
Sharkey: yes. ActivityPub for WordPress: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Sharkey or ActivityPub for WordPress?
ActivityPub for WordPress has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 2,048 MB for Sharkey. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.