The Public Community vs Discourse

Struggling to choose between The Public Community and Discourse? Both products offer unique advantages, making it a tough decision.

The Public Community is a Social & Communications solution with tags like open-source, privacy, security, messaging, file-sharing, team-collaboration.

It boasts features such as Open source code, Encrypted messaging, File sharing, Searchable message history, Polls and surveys, Audio/video calls, Screen sharing, Third-party app integrations, Custom theming, Access controls and permissions, Guest accounts, Mobile apps, Bots and automation and pros including Free and open source, Strong encryption and privacy, Active development community, Self-hostable, Customizable and extensible, Open API for integrations, Lightweight and fast, Available on multiple platforms.

On the other hand, Discourse is a Social & Communications product tagged with opensource, discussion, communities, organizations, conversations, teams, categories, tags, private-messages, notifications.

Its standout features include Topic-focused discussions, Real-time notifications, Private messaging, User roles and permissions, Mobile app, Categories and tags, Search, Moderation tools, Custom theming, Plugins and integrations, and it shines with pros like Open source and self-hosted, Active development community, Feature rich out of the box, Good performance at scale, Extensive theming and branding options, Robust moderation and admin tools.

To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison of these two products, delving into their features, pros, cons, pricing, and more. Get ready to explore the nuances that set them apart and determine which one is the perfect fit for your requirements.

The Public Community

The Public Community

The Public Community is an open source alternative to Slack and Microsoft Teams. It is a team communication and collaboration platform focused on privacy and security, allowing teams to have conversations, share files, and collaborate on projects.

Categories:
open-source privacy security messaging file-sharing team-collaboration

The Public Community Features

  1. Open source code
  2. Encrypted messaging
  3. File sharing
  4. Searchable message history
  5. Polls and surveys
  6. Audio/video calls
  7. Screen sharing
  8. Third-party app integrations
  9. Custom theming
  10. Access controls and permissions
  11. Guest accounts
  12. Mobile apps
  13. Bots and automation

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Free and open source

Strong encryption and privacy

Active development community

Self-hostable

Customizable and extensible

Open API for integrations

Lightweight and fast

Available on multiple platforms

Cons

Limited native integrations

Less user-friendly than Slack

Smaller user community

Fewer support options

Video calling can be buggy

Mobile apps lack some features


Discourse

Discourse

Discourse is an open-source discussion platform built for modern communities and organizations. It enables fluid conversations across teams with features like categories, tags, private messages, and real-time notifications.

Categories:
opensource discussion communities organizations conversations teams categories tags private-messages notifications

Discourse Features

  1. Topic-focused discussions
  2. Real-time notifications
  3. Private messaging
  4. User roles and permissions
  5. Mobile app
  6. Categories and tags
  7. Search
  8. Moderation tools
  9. Custom theming
  10. Plugins and integrations

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Open source and self-hosted

Active development community

Feature rich out of the box

Good performance at scale

Extensive theming and branding options

Robust moderation and admin tools

Cons

Can be resource intensive to self-host

Steeper learning curve than some forums

Limitations with native mobile apps

Less flexible than custom developed solutions