Mbin

Community-run fediverse platform mixing Reddit-style threads with microblogging.

Open sourceSelf-hostableSocial networks

Verified facts: 4 of 4
Alternatives ranked: 4
Approved reviews: 0
Visits sent from here: 0

About Mbin

Mbin is a decentralised content aggregator that combines Reddit-style threads, with links, voting and comments, and a microblog section for short posts like Mastodon. It began as a community fork of kbin when that project stalled, and is now maintained collectively with no single owner: changes are discussed openly and merged by consensus. Because it uses ActivityPub, Mbin servers can interact with Lemmy communities, Mastodon accounts, PeerTube channels and other fediverse services, so one account can follow both forum communities and individual people. Each instance is independently run, and anyone can host their own using Docker or a standard server install. It is free and open source under the AGPL, used through the web interface or third-party mobile apps. Mbin has fewer instances and users than Lemmy, and running an instance takes more resources than some lighter fediverse software.

Best for: Fediverse users who want forums and microblogging in one account.

What works

Threads and microblog posts in one place
Interoperates with Lemmy and Mastodon
Community-governed with no single maintainer

Why people leave

Smaller network than Lemmy
Heavier to self-host than some alternatives
Mobile use relies on third-party apps

Top Mbin alternatives

See all 4

1
Lemmy
The largest federated forum network, with more communities.
66.5
2Pi
PieFed
A Lemmy-compatible forum with strong filtering and moderation tools.
62.6
3
Reddit
The mainstream community forum with the most activity.
59.6
4
Mastodon
If you mostly want microblogging rather than forums.
57.2

Why people left Mbin

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Mbin: common questions

Is Mbin free?

Yes. Mbin is free, open-source software that you can host yourself.

Is Mbin open source?

Yes. The source code is on GitHub at MbinOrg/mbin. You can also run it on your own server.

What platforms does Mbin run on?

Mbin is available for Web and Self-hosted.

What are the best alternatives to Mbin?

The highest-ranked Mbin alternatives right now are Lemmy, PieFed and Reddit. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.

See all 4 Mbin alternatives

Mbin facts

4 of 4 verified

License: AGPL-3.0; Checked Oct 25, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab); “License: AGPL-3.0 (GNU Affero General Public License v3.0).”
Origins: Fork of kbin; Checked Oct 25, 2026joinmbin.org(opens source in a new tab); “Mbin is a fork of /kbin , community-focused.”
Interoperability: Lemmy, Mastodon, PeerTube and more; Checked Oct 25, 2026joinmbin.org(opens source in a new tab); “It can communicate with many other ActivityPub services, including Kbin, Mastodon, Lemmy, Pleroma, Peertube.”
Governance: No single maintainer; Checked Oct 25, 2026joinmbin.org(opens source in a new tab); “No single maintainer.”