Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Discourse VS Proboards

Compare Discourse VS Proboards and see what are their differences

Discourse logo Discourse

Discourse is an open source discussion platform built for the next decade of the Internet.

Proboards logo Proboards

ProBoards is a host of free forums with customer service.
  • Discourse Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-06-13
  • Proboards Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-03

Discourse features and specs

  • Modern Interface
    Discourse provides a clean, intuitive, and responsive user interface that works well on both desktops and mobile devices.
  • Open Source
    Discourse is open source software, allowing for customization, self-hosting, and community contributions, which can reduce costs and increase flexibility.
  • Rich Features
    The platform includes a variety of built-in features such as threaded replies, real-time notifications, and community moderation tools.
  • Scalability
    Discourse is designed to handle small communities as well as large, active forums, making it suitable for a variety of use cases.
  • Security
    Regular updates and a dedicated security team help keep the software secure against vulnerabilities.
  • Integration and APIs
    Discourse offers extensive APIs and integrates well with various other services and plugins, facilitating seamless extensions and automation.

Possible disadvantages of Discourse

  • Resource Intensive
    Discourse can be resource-heavy, which may require significant server capacity and maintenance, especially for large communities.
  • Hosting Costs
    While you can self-host Discourse, the server and maintenance costs can be high. Managed hosting plans provided by Discourse can also be expensive.
  • Complex Setup
    Installing and configuring Discourse can be complex, particularly for those without technical expertise in server management and Ruby on Rails.
  • Learning Curve
    Users and administrators might face a steeper learning curve compared to more traditional forum software due to its modern interface and extensive features.
  • Limited Built-in Themes
    The default theme options are somewhat limited, and extensive customization requires knowledge of front-end development.
  • Dependency on PostgreSQL and Redis
    Discourse relies on PostgreSQL for its database and Redis for caching, which might complicate setup and maintenance compared to solutions that use simpler database architectures.

Proboards features and specs

  • User-Friendly Interface
    Proboards offers a clean and intuitive interface that makes it easy for users of all experience levels to navigate and manage their forums.
  • Customization Options
    The platform provides extensive customization options, allowing administrators to modify the look and feel of their forums with themes, plugins, and custom HTML/CSS.
  • Free to Use
    Proboards is free to use, which makes it accessible for individuals and small communities who want to create a forum without incurring any costs.
  • Cloud Hosting
    Proboards hosts the forums on its own servers, which means users don't have to worry about server maintenance, uptime, or performance issues.
  • Responsive Design
    The platform's design is responsive, making it accessible on various devices including smartphones, tablets, and desktops.
  • Robust Community Support
    Proboards has an active community and support forum where users can find help, share ideas, and obtain plugins and themes.

Possible disadvantages of Proboards

  • Limited Storage
    The free version comes with limited storage, which may not be sufficient for large communities with a lot of media content.
  • Ads on Free Version
    Users of the free version have to deal with advertisements on their forums, which might be distracting or unappealing to some members.
  • Limited Advanced Features
    Compared to some other forum software, Proboards might lack certain advanced features that are critical for power-users or larger communities.
  • Data Weaving
    Exporting data for use with other forum platforms can be difficult, making it hard to migrate away from Proboards if needed.
  • Subscription for Extra Features
    To unlock additional features, remove ads, or get more storage, users need to subscribe to a paid plan which might not be suitable for everyone.
  • Dependency on Proboards Servers
    Since Proboards hosts all forums on their servers, users are dependent on Proboards for uptime and data security, which can be a risk if the service ever goes down.

Analysis of Proboards

Overall verdict

  • ProBoards is a good option for individuals or communities seeking an easy-to-use forum platform with a range of customization options and reliable hosting. Its reputation and long-standing presence in the market are testaments to its quality and user satisfaction.

Why this product is good

  • ProBoards is a popular choice for users who want to create and manage online forums without needing extensive technical knowledge. It offers a user-friendly interface, customizable designs, and various features such as threaded discussions, moderation tools, and member management. Additionally, ProBoards is cloud-hosted, which means you don't have to worry about server maintenance or software updates. The platform provides free forum hosting with monetization options through ad removal or exclusive themes and plugins as paid upgrades.

Recommended for

    ProBoards is recommended for hobbyist groups, clubs, fan communities, small businesses, educational institutions, and anyone else looking to build a community around shared interests with minimal technical barriers.

Discourse videos

Why We Chose The Discourse Platform For Our Forums

More videos:

  • Review - Why Discourse is the Best Forum Software Out There (No, Really) | Location Rebel
  • Review - A Grammar Review for Discourse Analysis

Proboards videos

No Proboards videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

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Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Discourse and Proboards)
Forums And Forum Software
Forums
93 93%
7% 7
Community Platform
88 88%
12% 12
Social Networks
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Discourse and Proboards

Discourse Reviews

20 Telegram Alternatives to Chat With in 2024
Discourse is a basic forum function that could be an alternative to Telegram if you want to stick to text discussions. It's pretty analog, missing both video and livestreaming tools. Instead, Discourse is a basic community that lets you organize discussions--it feels a bit like having your own reddit or Quora.
18 Best Discord Alternatives 2020 | Expert Reviews
Discourse comes in a couple of flavours. You can self-host it yourself in which case the software is free, and you simply need to sign up for server space, or you can pay Discourse for a hosted-for-you option, though self-hosting is a lot cheaper the premium option takes care of the technical side.
IndieHackers: Best forum software
I used Flarum when trying to get a community set up for my product (ended up abandoning it to revisit when we have a larger customer base). It worked fairly well and I enjoyed it but it's definitely beta and unless you're fairly tech savvy it's not quite worth the setup / maintenance. Lots of config changes, crashes, huge issues with plugins, and some features missing. I'd...

Proboards Reviews

We have no reviews of Proboards yet.
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Discourse should be more popular than Proboards. It has been mentiond 23 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Discourse mentions (23)

  • Qilin: A Starter Project Template For Every Open Source Project
    GitHub Discussions can also be a great place for support as long as these are regularly monitored. Another option along the same lines is Discourse and the Open Source Matrix which is used by quite a few Open Source and community-based projects. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • Ask HN: How to run an old-school mailing list?
    A lot of communities use [Discourse ](https://discourse.org). [LPSF](https://forum lpsf.org) migrated to it when Yahoo Groups was discontinued. Some of the advantages are that it's open source, self-hostable, and can be configured to work as both a traditional mailing list and modern forum. - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • My Fediverse use โ€“ I'm hosting everything myself โ€“ PeerTube, Mastodon and Lemmy
    More like https://discourse.org/. You can run it yourself, but I can also just have them ding a credit card every month and not think about it again (I do this for a community). - Source: Hacker News / almost 2 years ago
  • Reddit faces content quality concerns after its Great Mod Purge
    Discourse perhaps? I've seen it in use in a few places; it has a modern look and feel to it at least. https://discourse.org/. - Source: Hacker News / about 2 years ago
  • So Long, Twitter and Reddit
    I fully agree with you see my comment here[0] -- I think you may have misread my comment, it says "Discourse" (as in the forum software[1]), not Discord. [0]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37245220. - Source: Hacker News / about 2 years ago
View more

Proboards mentions (3)

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Discourse and Proboards, you can also consider the following products

Flarum - Flarum is the next-generation forum software that makes online discussion fun. It's simple, fast, and free.

ForumFree - ForumFree allows you to create a forum or a blog in a few simple steps.

phpBB - Raspberry Pi. The Raspberry Pi is a cheap, credit-card sized computer. The official website uses phpBB for their discussion forums. phpBB is not affiliated with nor responsible for any of the sites listed on the showcase.

Forumotion.com - Create a free forum : free forum hosting, free forum skins, templates editing, chatbox, RPG mod... Choose PhpBB 2 - 3, Invision or PunBB. Create forums now!

Vanilla Forums - Build an engaging community forum using Vanilla's modern cloud forum software.

PlushForums - PlushForums is a modern online forum hosting platform.