Apache Roller vs Meridian
Apache Roller
roller.apache.org
Meridian
meridian.blogSide by side
| Figure | Apache Roller | Meridian |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $9/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 2 |
| Spec score · Blogging Platforms | 8.7 (#19) | 9.3 (#2) |
| Blog analytics | Yes | Yes |
| Deployment | The installation guide covers deployment on Tomcat with MySQL; users have also reported success with other app servers and databases. | The product can be deployed with Docker or on Railway, Fly.io, or Render, and requires PostgreSQL 16 with Redis optional for caching. |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| License | Apache Roller is distributed under the Apache License, Version 2.0. | Meridian is released under the GNU Affero General Public License version 3. |
| Maker identity | The Apache Software Foundation is the nonprofit organization behind the project. | The site credits Ali Raza as creator, and his personal site describes him as a software architect and builder. |
| Product | Apache Roller is a Java-based, multi-user and group-blog server for blog sites large and small. | Meridian is a self-hosted blog engine with memberships and newsletters built in. |
| Support | Project-hosted support options are the user mailing list and issue tracker, with support provided by project volunteers. | The Self-Hosted plan includes community support, while the Managed Cloud plan lists priority support. |
Plans
In their own words
Apache Roller
Apache Roller has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.