# Discourse vs PanWatch

> Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.

| | Discourse | PanWatch |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 83/100 ✓ | 62/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 69 in Social Networks & Forums | #3 of 9 in Fintech |
| GitHub stars | 48 027 ✓ | 2 272 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +131 ✓ | +121 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 1 | 12 ✓ |
| Latest release | _gh-attach-assets · 15 Jul 2026 | 0.20.0 · 23 Oct 2026 ✓ |
| Setup | Moderate | Easy ✓ |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | GPL-2.0 | MIT |
| Main language | Ruby | Python |

## Which one should you pick?

Discourse scores 83/100 against 62/100 for PanWatch, so it is the safer default.

PanWatch ships more often: 12 stable releases in the past year, against 1 for Discourse.

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

## Details

- [Discourse](https://selfhost.directory/project/discourse) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/discourse.md)
- [PanWatch](https://selfhost.directory/project/panwatch) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/panwatch.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/discourse-vs-panwatch