# AppViewLite vs Discourse

> Two self-hosted [Social Networks & Forums projects](https://selfhost.directory/social-networks-forums), compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.

| | AppViewLite | Discourse |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 42/100 | 83/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #61 of 69 in Social Networks & Forums | #1 of 69 in Social Networks & Forums |
| GitHub stars | 203 | 48 024 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | — | +135 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 0 | 1 ✓ |
| Latest release | — | _gh-attach-assets · 15 Jul 2026 |
| Setup | Advanced | Moderate ✓ |
| Official Docker image | No | Yes ✓ |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| Main language | C# | Ruby |

## Which one should you pick?

Discourse scores 83/100 against 42/100 for AppViewLite, so it is the safer default.

Discourse ships more often: 1 stable releases in the past year, against 0 for AppViewLite.

If you want the quickest setup, Discourse is easier to run; AppViewLite needs more configuration.

Discourse is growing faster right now (+135 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [AppViewLite](https://selfhost.directory/project/appviewlite) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/appviewlite.md)
- [Discourse](https://selfhost.directory/project/discourse) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/discourse.md)

## Related comparisons

- [Discourse vs Rocket.Chat](https://selfhost.directory/compare/discourse-vs-rocketchat)
- [Discourse vs Zulip](https://selfhost.directory/compare/discourse-vs-zulip)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/appviewlite-vs-discourse