Best Mastodon Alternatives in 2026
15 community platforms our editors would look at instead of Mastodon, in our ranking order.
Mastodon: A free, federated social platform for open communities that value control and portability. Where it falls short: less suited to structured groups and event-led communities.
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Best forEstablished communities needing deep discussion tools
A mature choice for communities that need discussion, chat, moderation, and private spaces.
- Custom domain
- Private spaces
- Event hosting
10.0/10★★★★★Visit Discourse -
Best forFree public discussion communities
A flexible, free home for public topic discussions with substantial moderation tools.
- Private spaces
- Event hosting
- Moderation tools
6.8/10★★★☆☆Visit Reddit -
UNA not yet scored
Best forHighly customizable self-hosted communities
A flexible community stack for organizations that want control over hosting, features, and mobile apps.
- Private spaces
- Event hosting
- Moderation tools
—not yet scoredVisit UNA -
Best forBudget-conscious forum communities
A flexible, budget-conscious forum platform with self-hosting and managed plans.
- Custom domain
- Private spaces
- Moderation tools
9.0/10★★★★☆Visit NodeBB -
Best forSelf-hosted social communities
A broad community platform with self-hosted control, hosted plans, and branded mobile apps.
- Private spaces
- Event hosting
- Moderation tools
7.8/10★★★★☆Visit phpFox -
Best forLow-cost secure groups and internal communities
A low-cost community platform with secure spaces, collaboration tools, and flexible deployment options.
- Custom domain
- Private spaces
- Event hosting
9.0/10★★★★☆Visit Whaller -
Best forEnterprise customer-support communities
A broad customer-support community platform with contact-sales pricing.
- Custom domain
- Private spaces
- Event hosting
7.0/10★★★★☆Visit Higher Logic -
Khoros Aurora AI not yet scored
Best forEnterprise communities needing workflow automation
A broad, automation-focused community platform for complex enterprise programs.
- Private spaces
- Event hosting
- Moderation tools
—not yet scoredVisit Khoros -
Best forFeature-rich communities with branded apps
A broad community platform for organizations that need apps, automation and member operations.
- Custom domain
- Private spaces
- Event hosting
9.0/10★★★★☆Visit Octo -
Best forPaid communities with courses and live rooms
A broad community platform for paid learning communities and live member experiences.
- Custom domain
- Private spaces
- Event hosting
9.0/10★★★★☆Visit Mateflow -
Best forLocal groups centered on in-person events
A strong fit for local event communities, with less breadth for courses and customization.
- Private spaces
- Event hosting
- Moderation tools
7.0/10★★★★☆Visit Meetup -
CampusGroups not yet scored
Best forCampuses managing clubs, events and communications
A campus-focused platform for managing student groups, events, communications and payments.
- Custom domain
- Private spaces
- Event hosting
—not yet scoredVisit CampusGroups -
Best forCreators monetizing courses, events, and memberships
A broad platform for creators selling memberships, courses, events, and paid content.
- Custom domain
- Private spaces
- Event hosting
9.0/10★★★★☆Try Mighty Networks -
Best forPaid communities with live events
A polished choice for paid communities that need events, courses, and live rooms.
- Custom domain
- Private spaces
- Event hosting
9.0/10★★★★☆Visit Circle -
Best forEnterprise forums with content hubs
A broad community suite for organizations that need forums, content hubs, and private spaces.
- Custom domain
- Private spaces
- Event hosting
8.0/10★★★★☆Visit Invision
Mastodon Alternatives: Common Questions
What is the best alternative to Mastodon?
Discourse: #1 in our Community Platforms ranking, with an editor score of 10.0 out of 10. A mature choice for communities that need discussion, chat, moderation, and private spaces.
Is there a free alternative to Mastodon?
Yes. Discourse, Reddit, UNA, NodeBB and Whaller have a free plan or a free tier (7 of the 15 alternatives on this page).
What is the cheapest paid alternative to Mastodon?
Of the alternatives here that publish a price, NodeBB starts lowest, at $20/mo.
Mastodon vs Each Alternative
| # | Tool | Free plan | Paid from | Member limit | Event hosting | Private spaces | Custom domain | Moderation tools | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| not scored | Mastodon | Yes | None | — | — | — | Yes | Yes | — |
| 1 | Discourse | Yes | $100/mo | — | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 10.0 |
| 2 | Yes | — | — | Yes | Yes | — | Yes | 6.8 | |
| not scored | UNA | Yes | None | — | Yes | Yes | — | Yes | — |
| 4 | NodeBB | Yes | $20/mo | — | — | Yes | Yes | Yes | 9.0 |
| 5 | phpFox | No | $39/mo | — | Yes | Yes | — | Yes | 7.8 |
| 6 | Whaller | Yes | — | — | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 9.0 |
| 7 | Higher Logic Vanilla | No | — | — | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 7.0 |
| not scored | Khoros Aurora AI | — | — | — | Yes | Yes | — | Yes | — |
| 9 | Octo | Yes | $29/mo | 999 members | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 9.0 |
| 10 | Mateflow | No | $49/mo | — | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 9.0 |
| 11 | Meetup | Yes | — | — | Yes | Yes | — | Yes | 7.0 |
| not scored | CampusGroups | — | — | — | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | — |
| 13 | Mighty Networks | No | $79/mo | — | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 9.0 |
| 14 | Circle | No | $89/mo | — | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 9.0 |
| 15 | Invision Community | No | — | — | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 8.0 |
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Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Sep 2026