NodeBB vs Simple Machines Forum
NodeBB
nodebb.orgSimple Machines Forum
simplemachines.orgSide by side
| Figure | NodeBB | Simple Machines Forum |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $20/mo | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | — |
| API | Yes | — |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 6 | 1 |
| Spec score · Forum Software | 8.8 (#3) | 7.2 (#14) |
| Posting | Users can compose topics and replies with either a WYSIWYG editor or a Markdown editor. | SMF 2.1 supports HTML5 attachment uploading, including drag and drop, and saved drafts. |
| Product | NodeBB is a community discussion platform for forums and online communities. | SMF is free and open-source community forum software for setting up an online community. |
| Security | NodeBB operates a bug bounty program, but eligible testing is limited to try.nodebb.org and third-party plugins are excluded. | SMF 2.1 upgrades password hashing to bcrypt and uses unique form tokens to help prevent CSRF attacks. |
| Support | Paid hosting plans list priority support, and NodeBB also points users to its community support forum. | The support site directs users to FAQs, community forum search, community questions, and the online manual. |
Plans
NodeBB
- Starter$20 a month
- Hamlet$100 a month
- Village$250 a month
- City$750 a month
- Self-hostedFree
- Enterprise SolutionsPriced on request
In their own words
NodeBB
NodeBB is a community discussion platform for forums and online communities, including brand communities and product support boards. Members can write topics and replies using a visual editor or Markdown, chat in real time, and receive notifications for follows, likes and topic subscriptions. They can form groups with activity feeds, tag topics and follow tags for updates. Administrators can create unlimited moderator and administrator accounts and set their permissions. More than 500 plugins and themes can be installed through the control panel, and public Read and RESTful Write APIs support integrations. Spam-prevention integrations include Akismet, StopForumSpam and Project Honeypot. Self-hosted NodeBB is free to download and install under GPLv3; hosted plans start at $20 a month and include priority support. Basic full-text search uses the bundled database engine; Solr and Elasticsearch search require third-party plugins. Installation guides cover Linux, macOS, Windows and cloud deployment options including Docker.
Simple Machines Forum
Simple Machines Forum has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.