Forem
A branded publishing community with profiles, feeds and discussion; deployment is considerably less friendly than the members.
Technical Profile & Specs
verified 2026-08-10
- Cost
- $0 / forever (Open Source)
- License
- AGPL-3.0+
- Hosting Model
- Self-host (your server)
- Platforms
- webself-hostedself-host, real ops
- Installation
- Deploy the current beta production setup with Kamal 2, Docker, a registry, SSH access, PostgreSQL, Redis, and a domain
- Operational Setup
- The project's own production deployment path is explicitly beta and assumes comfort with Docker images, Kamal, SSH, secrets, a registry, PostgreSQL, Redis, DNS, and backups.
- Where Your Data Lives
- Profiles, articles, comments, and relationships live in PostgreSQL; cache/jobs use Redis, while uploaded media uses the configured file or cloud-media backend.
- The Catch / Trade-off
- Forem delivers profiles, feeds, publishing, and discussion, but it is publishing-first and its beta production deployment is far less approachable than Bettermode's hosted builder.
Replaces 3 paid apps
up to $197/mo ($2,364/yr) in subscriptions
Forem FAQ
Common questions
Is Forem free and open source?+
Forem is an open-source tool licensed under AGPL-3.0+ that runs on self-host. A branded publishing community with profiles, feeds and discussion; deployment is considerably less friendly than the members.
What paid software does Forem replace?+
Forem serves as a free replacement for 3 paid SaaS applications: Bettermode, Circle.so, Tribe Community, saving up to $197/month ($2,364/year) in subscription bills.
How do you install and set up Forem?+
Installation: Deploy the current beta production setup with Kamal 2, Docker, a registry, SSH access, PostgreSQL, Redis, and a domain. Setup notes: The project's own production deployment path is explicitly beta and assumes comfort with Docker images, Kamal, SSH, secrets, a registry, PostgreSQL, Redis, DNS, and backups.
What is the catch or trade-off with Forem?+
Forem delivers profiles, feeds, publishing, and discussion, but it is publishing-first and its beta production deployment is far less approachable than Bettermode's hosted builder.