PixelFedvsPulse
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| PixelFed | Pulse | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 64/100 | 71/100 |
| Rank in category | #11 of 69 in Social Networks & Forums | #2 of 19 in Infrastructure Monitoring |
| GitHub stars | 7 131 | 6 973 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +24 | +232 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 15 | 43 |
| Latest release | v0.15.2 · 21 Oct 2026 | helm-chart-6.6.0 · 25 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Advanced | Easy |
| Official Docker image | No | Yes |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Main language | PHP | Go |
Which one should you pick?
Pulse scores 71/100 against 64/100 for PixelFed, so it is the safer default.
Pulse ships more often: 43 stable releases in the past year, against 15 for PixelFed.
If you want the quickest setup, Pulse is easier to run; PixelFed needs more configuration.
Pulse is growing faster right now (+232 stars in 30 days).
PixelFed details →Pulse details →