# Flarum vs NodeBB

> 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.

| | Flarum | NodeBB |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 69/100 | 73/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #6 of 69 in Social Networks & Forums | #4 of 69 in Social Networks & Forums |
| GitHub stars | 6 764 | 15 243 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | +13 | +18 ✓ |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 12 | 31 ✓ |
| Latest release | v1.8.21 · 23 Oct 2026 | v4.16.5 · 28 Oct 2026 ✓ |
| Setup | Moderate | Moderate ✓ |
| Official Docker image | No | Yes ✓ |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Main language | PHP | JavaScript |

## Which one should you pick?

NodeBB scores 73/100 against 69/100 for Flarum, so it is the safer default.

NodeBB ships more often: 31 stable releases in the past year, against 12 for Flarum.

## Details

- [Flarum](https://selfhost.directory/project/flarum) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/flarum.md)
- [NodeBB](https://selfhost.directory/project/nodebb) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/nodebb.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/flarum-vs-nodebb