Best Community Platforms in 2026
Updated
In short: NodeBB is ranked #1 of 126 as of 4 October 2026, ahead of Whaller and Octo. The best-ranked option with a free plan is Whaller. The lowest first paid tier on this page is Whaller at €3/mo.
When you’re bringing people together around a shared interest or group, compare community platforms on the features that help members connect and participate. Private spaces and moderation tools can shape how a community is managed; event hosting and mobile apps may matter for how members interact. Also weigh member limits, custom domains, free-plan availability, and paid-from prices. Whaller, NodeBB, and Octo lead the opening entries, followed by Heartbeat, Discourse, Kazokus, UNA, and Meetup. Consider which access controls and community features are relevant to your group, then use the listed criteria to compare the options.
126 community platforms ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
#1 NodeBB Top pick · 9.3 Free plan · $20/mo
#2 Whaller Runner-up · 9.2 Free plan · €3/mo
#3 Octo Also great · 9.1 Free plan · $29/mo
- Free planFree trial apiLinuxmacOSself-hostedWebWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Paid from
- $20/mo
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$20/mofirst paid tier About NodeBBVisit site - Free plan WebWindowsmacOSiOSAndroid
- Free plan
- Yes
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms€3/mofirst paid tier About WhallerVisit site - Free plan AndroidiOSself-hostedWeb
- Free plan
- Yes
- Paid from
- $29/mo
- Member limit
- 999 members
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$29/mofirst paid tier About OctoVisit site - Free plan AndroidapiiOSself-hostedWeb
- Free plan
- Yes
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Free plan self-hosted
- Free plan
- Yes
- Paid from
- $100/mo
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$100/mofirst paid tier About DiscourseVisit site - Free planFree trial AndroidiOSWeb
- Free plan
- Yes
- Paid from
- $39/mo
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$3,959/mofirst paid tier About HuddleSpotVisit site - Free trial AndroidapiiOSmacOSWebWindows
- Free plan
- No
- Paid from
- $89/mo
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$89/mofirst paid tier About CircleVisit site - WebiOSAndroid
- Free plan
- Yes
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Free plan WebiOSAndroid
- Free plan
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Free plan AndroidiOS
- Free plan
- Yes
- Paid from
- $49/mo
- Member limit
- 500 members
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$59/mofirst paid tier About RakletVisit site - Free plan AndroidiOSWeb
- Free plan
- Yes
- Paid from
- $19/mo
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$6.25/mofirst paid tier About UmmahVisit site - WebiOSAndroid
- Free plan
- Yes
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - WebiOSAndroid
- Free plan
- No
- Paid from
- $39/mo
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$39/mofirst paid tier About phpFoxVisit site - AndroidiOSWeb
- Free plan
- No
- Paid from
- $79/mo
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$79/mofirst paid tier About Mighty NetworksVisit site - WebiOSAndroid
- Free plan
- Yes
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Free planFree trial Web
- Free plan
- Yes
- Paid from
- $70/mo
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$70/mofirst paid tier About ThigmoVisit site - Free plan WebiOSAndroid
- Free plan
- Yes
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$12.42/mofirst paid tier About PeepSoVisit site - Free plan iOSWeb
- Free plan
- Yes
- Paid from
- $49/mo
- Member limit
- 2,500 members
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$49/mofirst paid tier About KazokusVisit site - WebiOSAndroid
- Free plan
- No
- Paid from
- $49/mo
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$49/mofirst paid tier About MateflowVisit site - WebiOSAndroid
- Free plan
- No
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - WebiOSAndroid
- Free plan
- No
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Free trial apiWeb
- Free plan
- Yes
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Free trial AndroidiOS
- Free plan
- No
- Paid from
- $49/mo
- Member limit
- 350 members
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
- Custom domain
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$19/mofirst paid tier About HeartbeatVisit site - WebiOSAndroid
- Free plan
- No
- Paid from
- $29/mo
- Member limit
- 5 members
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$29/mofirst paid tier About SocialEngineVisit site - Free plan WebiOSAndroid
- Free plan
- Yes
- Event hosting
- Yes
- Private spaces
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms
Is your app on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored. They are labelled, and the editorial order and scores never change for payment.
Questions about this list
Which community platform is ranked first on Everything Xiaomi?
NodeBB is ranked #1 of 126 with a score of 9.3. Whaller is second and Octo third.
How many of these have a free plan?
13 of the 25 on this page publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
Which is the cheapest paid option?
On this page, Whaller has the lowest first paid tier we found: €3/mo.
How is this list ranked?
Ranked on what each maker publishes: documentation depth, a free tier and the platforms it runs on. Paid placements never change a rank.