Ghostbin vs wastebin
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted pastebins & snippets options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
wastebin
Minimal pastebin server written in Rust
| Feature | Ghostbin | wastebin |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 7 · At risk | 82 · Excellent |
| Status | Archived | Actively maintained |
| Category | Pastebins & Snippets | Pastebins & Snippets |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | JavaScript | Rust |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | docker, binary, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 188 | ★ 860 |
| First released | 2014 | 2022 |
| Replaces | Pastebin.com, GitHub Gist | Pastebin.com |
What are Ghostbin and wastebin?
Ghostbin
Ghostbin, whose engine is now called spectre, is a feature-rich, self-hosted pastebin offering syntax highlighting, paste expiration, and optional encryption. It is the open-source software that powered the public Ghostbin service.
- Syntax highlighting
- Optional encryption
- Paste expiration
- Self-hosted control
wastebin
wastebin is a minimal, fast pastebin service backed by SQLite and written in Rust. It offers syntax highlighting, paste expiration, optional encryption, and a tiny resource footprint.
- Tiny resource usage
- SQLite storage
- Syntax highlighting
- Paste expiry and encryption
Ghostbin vs wastebin: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: Ghostbin's repository is archived and no longer developed, while wastebin is actively maintained. Ghostbin is written in JavaScript, while wastebin is built with Rust. Ghostbin is the more established project (first released 2014), while wastebin arrived in 2022. Wastebin has the considerably larger community, at 860 GitHub stars versus 188.
Why pick each one
Choose Ghostbin if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in JavaScript
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Choose wastebin if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Rust
Frequently asked questions
Is Ghostbin or wastebin better?
wastebin is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Ghostbin if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Ghostbin and wastebin free and open-source?
Yes. Ghostbin is licensed under MIT and wastebin under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Ghostbin and wastebin with Docker?
Ghostbin: yes. wastebin: yes.