Spectrum vs Syphon
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted apps from related categories — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Spectrum
Open-source platform for building online communities
VS
Syphon
Privacy-focused Matrix client built with Flutter
| Feature | Spectrum | Syphon |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Forums & Community | Matrix & XMPP |
| License | BSD-3-Clause | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | JavaScript | Dart |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 2,048 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 10,837 | ★ 1,061 |
| First released | 2017 | 2020 |
| Replaces | Discord, Discourse | WhatsApp, Discord |
Why pick each one
Choose Spectrum if…
- Released under the BSD-3-Clause license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 10.8k GitHub stars
- Written in JavaScript
Choose Syphon if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Active community (1.1k GitHub stars)
- Written in Dart
Frequently asked questions
Is Spectrum or Syphon better?
Neither is universally better. Spectrum has the larger community, while Syphon is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Spectrum and Syphon free and open-source?
Yes. Spectrum is licensed under BSD-3-Clause and Syphon under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Spectrum and Syphon with Docker?
Spectrum: yes. Syphon: check the project docs for container support.