SHSelfHostIndex

Smithereen vs Streams

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?
SM Smithereen Federated social network with a familiar layout VS ST Streams Decentralized social server with nomadic identity
FeatureSmithereenStreams
Deploy effortUnder-an-hour setupUnder-an-hour setup
CategorySocial NetworksSocial Networks
LicenseAGPL-3.0MIT
LanguageJavaPHP
Setup difficultyMediumHard
Min. RAM1,024 MB1,024 MB
Deploymentdocker, bare-metaldocker, bare-metal
GitHub stars★ 546★ 100
First released20202021
ReplacesFacebook, VKFacebook, Mastodon

What are Smithereen and Streams?

Smithereen

Smithereen is a federated, ActivityPub-powered social network whose interface is inspired by classic social media layouts. It supports friends, walls, photo albums, and groups across the fediverse.

  • Classic social layout
  • Friend and wall model
  • Photo albums
  • Fediverse groups

Streams

Streams is a free, decentralized social communication server that supports nomadic identity, letting accounts move and clone between instances. It federates with the fediverse and offers fine-grained permissions.

  • Nomadic identity
  • Account cloning across servers
  • Fediverse federation
  • Granular permissions

Smithereen vs Streams: key differences

Smithereen is written in Java, while Streams is built with PHP. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Smithereen versus MIT for Streams. Smithereen has the considerably larger community, at 546 GitHub stars versus 100.

Why pick each one

Choose Smithereen if…

  • Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
  • First-class Docker support for quick deployment
  • Written in Java
Smithereen details

Choose Streams if…

  • Released under the MIT license
  • First-class Docker support for quick deployment
  • Written in PHP
Streams details

Frequently asked questions

Is Smithereen or Streams better?

Smithereen is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider Streams if its specific feature set fits your needs better.

Are Smithereen and Streams free and open-source?

Yes. Smithereen is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Streams under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Smithereen and Streams with Docker?

Smithereen: yes. Streams: yes.

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