Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Flarum

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

Flarum

Flarum Reviews and Details

This page is designed to help you find out whether Flarum is good and if it is the right choice for you.

Screenshots and images

  • Flarum Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-07-27

Features & Specs

  1. Modern Design

    Flarum features a sleek, user-friendly interface designed for modern web aesthetics and accessibility. This makes it appealing and easy to use for community members.

  2. Extensibility

    Flarum is highly extensible with a robust plugin system, allowing users to customize and expand its functionalities via extensions created by the community or custom-developed.

  3. Fast Performance

    Built with performance in mind, Flarum is lightweight and optimized for speed, ensuring a smooth user experience.

  4. Mobile Friendly

    Flarum is fully responsive, allowing for seamless use across various devices, including tablets and smartphones.

  5. Open Source

    Flarum is an open-source project, which means you can contribute to its development, audit its code, and use it without licensing fees.

Badges

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Videos

How to Install Flarum Extensions to Super-Charge Forum?

Custom pages that open modals and discussion composer (Flarum beta7 extension tutorial)

Reviews

  1. User avatar
    GraceyMartin
    ยท employ at Digital Marketing ยท
     
    BPM Counter

    BPM Counter analyzes the tempo of incoming audio in beats per minute (bpm). The detection circuit looks for any transients, also known as impulses, in the input signal. Transients are very fast, nonperiodic sound events in the attack portion of the signal. The more obvious this impulse is, the easier it is for BPM Counter to detect the tempo.

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Social recommendations and mentions

We have tracked the following product recommendations or mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you see what people think about Flarum and what they use it for.
  • Slack is extorting us with a $195k/yr bill increase
    Lots of criticism here but feels like a community that would have been better served by spinning up a forum server or something along those lines. These are pretty easy to get going. Cheers! https://www.discourse.org/ https://flarum.org/ https://www.simplemachines.org/. - Source: Hacker News / 10 months ago
  • Looking for the best forum software to start a new forum community in 2025
    Flarum is great [1]. Looks good, works on mobile, continuously updated. Try it out. Edit: Oh wow, downvoted for posting a good recommendation? 1: https://flarum.org/. - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Ask HN: User communities that aren't Discord?
    Flarum is a really nice open source forum https://flarum.org/. - Source: Hacker News / about 2 years ago
  • Stop Using Discord
    Load quicker than Discourse and feel snappy. [0]: https://flarum.org/. - Source: Hacker News / about 2 years ago
  • Posthog is closing their Slack community in favor of forum
    From a user perspective I really like Flarum https://flarum.org/ Some example forums that use flarum: Flarum itself: https://discuss.flarum.org/ GrapheneOS: https://discuss.grapheneos.org/ Kagi and Orion: https://kagifeedback.org/ https://orionfeedback.org/ Mailcow: https://community.mailcow.email/ Many more can be found here: https://builtwithflarum.com/. - Source: Hacker News / over 2 years ago
  • Introducing the new Godot Forum
    Nice! I kinda wish they went with https://flarum.org/ instead of discourse, though. I think Flarum is the better forum software and it is also open source. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Show HN: Booklet โ€“ modern discussion forum for professional groups
    Not sure yet how this compares to Flarum - https://freeflarum.com/ you can self-host too https://flarum.org/. - Source: Hacker News / almost 3 years ago
  • Don't Use Discord as a Forum
    Https://flarum.org/ is a nice modern alternative, also free. - Source: Hacker News / almost 3 years ago
  • Ask HN: What forum software do you recommend?
    Https://flarum.org/ is really nice and modern. I donated to https://freeflarum.com/ and used my custom domain for their hosted free offering. - Source: Hacker News / almost 3 years ago
  • Simple WYSIWYG html editor? Open source or cheap.
    I've been playing around with a new open source forum called Flarum for my blog. It's a forum by nature but it has a blog extension and with some work you can get it to be just a blog that looks pretty nice. I just recently finished getting mine moved over (I rarely blog but here it is) - I'm not too sold on it yet either though so there's that. Source: about 3 years ago
  • Ask HN: Is the internet as we knew it, dead?
    I'm currently investigating Flarum for my forum. Have you seen it? https://flarum.org/. - Source: Hacker News / about 3 years ago
  • After the Dark - Beyond the Blackout and Next Steps
    Forum such as Flarum. Flarum has a bit the look and feel as Reddit... Source: about 3 years ago
  • PhpBB
    The old PhpBB/VBulletin format has a certain familiar charm to it, but I find it hard to go back after using modern forum systems like Discourse that fix a lot of the old system's UX shortcomings. Anyone have experience with Flarum (https://flarum.org)? I've been peripherally aware of it for years (it it looks like it's still quite active on GitHub) and it looks like a nice lighter-weight alternative to Discourse... - Source: Hacker News / about 3 years ago
  • Just remember forums exist
    Flarum (full disclosure, I have previously done some development on this one). Source: about 3 years ago
  • Waterhole โ€“ modern Laravel-powered community forum software
    I'm the original developer of Flarum - open-source forum software. In 2019 I left Flarum because of burnout. Source: about 3 years ago
  • Show HN: Waterhole โ€“ modern community forum software
    Hey HN! I'm the original developer of Flarum[1] - open-source forum software. In 2019 I left Flarum because of burnout[2]. Generally speaking, I think open-source is a great fit for libraries[3], but less so for products. I wanted to be able to simplify the exchange: build a great product and sell it. It's been a few years but I'm excited to have just launched my follow-up project: Waterhole. https://waterhole.dev... - Source: Hacker News / about 3 years ago
  • PhpBB 3.3.10
    I would name PunBB[0], which can be run on a potato computer. It was often configured to use SQLite database, so it really seems lightweight for CPU, disk and memory usage. In terms of source code - it was also very thin. Also Flarum [1] looks good in terms of being lightweight. It is based on Laravel Framework, so it has own pros and cons, but thanks to wise implementation of mithril.js it felt very fast from a... - Source: Hacker News / over 3 years ago
  • PhpBB 3.3.10
    This has been mentioned before here, but I would like to high https://flarum.org/ as a more modern (looking) alternative, minus the nostalgia of course. - Source: Hacker News / over 3 years ago
  • Flarum for Community Forum? (PHP/Java)
    But I just discovered Flarum. It's an interesting value proposition. Similar to Discourse but coded in PHP/Java instead of Ruby On Rails. Lots of extensions. Everything open source. Has anyone had experience using Flarum as the home for their community? If so could you please share the good / bad? Any words of warning? Source: over 3 years ago
  • Any Rust based forum software?
    I remember seeing an announcement of something a week or two ago which looked like a Discourse/Flarum clone to me (Flarum is the PHP analogue to Discourse) but I think it was being announced as sort of a way to self-host a subreddit, so I'm having trouble searching my bookmarks for it because of all the actual reddit URLs. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Why Slackโ€™s free plan change is causing an exodus
    Flarum (https://flarum.org/) is an interesting option. - Source: Hacker News / almost 4 years ago

Summary of the public mentions of Flarum

Flarum is a prominent player in the open-source forum software category, emerging as a modern alternative with a lightweight framework. As an open-source platform, it holds its ground among competitors like Discourse, XenForo, phpBB, NodeBB, MyBB, Vanilla Forums, and FluxBB by offering a lightweight and user-friendly experience, supported by PHP and JavaScript frameworks like Laravel and Mithril.js.

General Perception

Public opinion of Flarum is generally favorable, with users appreciating its modern aesthetic and mobile responsiveness. The software's continuous updates and active community support further enhance its appeal. Its lightweight nature, coupled with a semblance to Discourse, offers an attractive option for those who seek a less resource-intensive forum solution. Some users convey a preference for Flarum over established alternatives, citing its open-source nature and the engaging user experience it provides.

Usability and Setup

However, the setup and maintenance of Flarum can pose challenges, particularly for those not possessing technical expertise. Many users describe the platform as still being in a โ€œbetaโ€ state, which implies occasional instability, such as crashes and configuration complexities. There have been reports of plugin compatibility issues, alongside missing features that novice users or those seeking out-of-the-box solutions might find obstructive.

Comparative Perspective

When compared to other platform giants like Discourse or MyBB, Flarum is often praised for its speed and modernity, though it's less robust in feature set and stability. Some users recommend considering heavier platforms or more established forums like Reddit if the primary aim is user engagement without the need for extensive technical management. Meanwhile, for those who relish customization and are technically inclined, Flarum offers a significant advantage.

Community and Developer Support

The involvement of an active community is a strong pillar for Flarum's ongoing development. Checkpoints such as discussion forums and websites built with Flarum showcase its flexibility and potential. However, there's still room for more formalized support infrastructure to mitigate the challenges faced by less experienced users.

Developer Insights

Feedback from the original developer of Flarum underscores an industry-wide challenge with open-source projects, particularly concerning sustainable development under a demanding workload. His subsequent venture, Waterhole, represents an evolution in addressing the need for a viable business model while retaining the open-source ethos, emphasizing an extensible design targeted towards brands and creators.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Flarum stands out as a promising tool for creating modern community forums, particularly suited to tech-savvy users who can navigate its setup intricacies to maximize its utility. Its potential for customization makes it a compelling choice for those willing to invest in its ecosystem, though considerations around stability and support may necessitate a strategic evaluation against user needs and available resources. As it matures, Flarum could solidify its standing as a leading choice in open-source forum technologies, provided it continues to address existing limitations.

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Is Flarum good? This is an informative page that will help you find out. Moreover, you can review and discuss Flarum here. The primary details have not been verified within the last quarter, and they might be outdated. If you think we are missing something, please use the means on this page to comment or suggest changes. All reviews and comments are highly encouranged and appreciated as they help everyone in the community to make an informed choice. Please always be kind and objective when evaluating a product and sharing your opinion.