head to head · open source
core vs Pixelfed
core has 8,829 GitHub stars, 2,059 forks, 141 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Pixelfed has 7,105 stars, 881 forks, 116 open issues and last shipped yesterday. core leads on adoption by 24% (8,829 vs 7,105 stars). core is written in PHP under AGPL-3.0; Pixelfed is written in PHP under AGPL-3.0. core has attracted 23% as many forks as stars, Pixelfed 12%. Pixelfed was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| core | Pixelfed | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 8.8K | ★ 7.1K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | PHP | PHP |
| Last push | 2026-09-19 | 2026-09-19 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.1K | ⑂ 881 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick core if
- You weight community size — 8.8K stars and counting
- You want the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches PHP
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Pixelfed if
- You want the Pixelfed feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches PHP
- You evaluated both and Pixelfed fits your workflow better
About core
ownCloud Core is the server side component of ownCloud Classic, an open source file platform written in PHP and released under the AGPL 3.0 license. It provides file storage, synchronization, and sharing, and it ships WebDAV, CalDAV, and CardDAV servers alongside a plugin architecture that other ownCloud apps extend. The repository is the main one for ownCloud Classic and serves as the foundation for apps such as Activity, Calendar, and Contacts. Development is stewarded by the Kiteworks Open Source Program Office under the ownCloud brand.
About Pixelfed
Pixelfed is an open source, ad free photo sharing platform written in PHP and released under the AGPL 3.0 license. It is built on the Laravel framework and lives in the fediverse, the federated social web, communicating with other servers through the ActivityPub protocol. The project describes itself as photo sharing "the way it should be," letting casual shots and creative photography find an audience without algorithmic barriers.
read the full Pixelfed overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is core or Pixelfed more popular?
core has 8,829 GitHub stars and Pixelfed has 7,105. core has the larger community by that measure.
Are core and Pixelfed free?
Both are open source. core is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Pixelfed under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between core and Pixelfed?
core is written in PHP and Pixelfed in PHP. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, core or Pixelfed?
Choose core if you want the larger community (8,829 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Pixelfed if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.