Artalk

Self-hosted comment system for blogs and websites, with a small vanilla JavaScript widget and a Go server you run yourself.

2.4k stars, 213 forks Go On GitHub since October 2018

Visit website View on GitHub How to run it

Artalk at a glance

Open sourceYes, MITNo paid parts in the repository
Health54 of 100Actively developed
Self-hostingDocker, Desktop appsCompose file, 1 service
AppsmacOS, Windows, Linux, including ARMBuilds in GitHub releases
Interface8 languagesIncluding English, French and Portuguese
Issue repliesWithin ~37 daysMedian first reply; 22% of recent issues answered

What is Artalk?

Artalk adds a comment section to any blog, website or web app without a third-party commenting service. The embeddable client is about 40 KB of plain JavaScript and does not depend on a front-end framework, and the server is a Go program that runs on several platforms. Features include social login, email and push notifications, captcha, spam filtering and moderation, Markdown, LaTeX, image uploads, voting, pinning and nested replies. One server can handle several sites, and it also counts page views. There is a sidebar for quick moderation, a command-line tool and OpenAPI documentation.

Good fit if

  • You want to remove a hosted comment service from your site and keep reader data on your own server.
  • You manage comments for several websites from one installation.
  • You need moderation and notification features without a heavy front-end bundle.

Look elsewhere if

  • You would like to compare it with another self-hosted comment engine under the same MIT license: remark42 or Isso.
  • You need a full discussion forum rather than comments under articles: Discourse.

Before you adopt it

Artalk has used the MIT license since September 2023, when it was relicensed from LGPL-3.0, and the repository has no paid parts. Deployment takes one Docker container, and prebuilt binaries are published for Linux, macOS and Windows, along with go install and Linux package options. The interface comes in 8 languages. Ten authors contributed in the last 90 days, and the latest release is v2.10.1.

Drafted with AI from the project's README and repository data, then checked against that data on 7 November 2026. Report a correction

How to run Artalk yourself

One-click install

Not listed in the app catalogs of Umbrel, YunoHost, TrueNAS, Unraid, CasaOS, Runtipi, Proxmox VE Helper-Scripts and Coolify.

Ways to install

Docker files
Dockerfile or compose file in the repository
Compose file
docker-compose.yml: 1 service
Setup effort
1 of 5, judged from the compose file
Kubernetes
No Helm chart in the repository
Packages
AUR, Nix and Termux versions on Repology
Desktop and mobile
Builds for macOS, Windows, Linux, including ARM in GitHub releases
Interface languages
8 languages: Chinese, English, French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian and Turkish

Install instructions: artalk.js.org or the README on GitHub. Docker images and packages are checked weekly.

Artalk health: is it still maintained?

54 of 100, actively developed

Release rhythmEvery ~28 days2 releases in 12 months; latest v2.10.1
Issue repliesWithin ~37 daysMedian first reply; 22% of recent issues answered
Bus factorMedium riskThe most active of 10 authors wrote 50% of recent commits
  • Activity
    23 commits in the last 90 days, the latest on 6 November 2026.
    17 / 30
  • Contributors
    10 people wrote the 23 commits of the last 90 days; the most active wrote 50% of them.
    14 / 20
  • Releases
    2 releases in the last 12 months; the latest, v2.10.1, on 25 October 2026.
    15 / 20
  • Replies to issues
    Maintainers answered 22% of recent issues, with a median first reply after 37 days.
    3 / 20
  • Security practices
    No OpenSSF Scorecard for this repository yet, so this part gets a neutral score.
    5 / 10

Read from GitHub on 12 November 2026. How the score works

Artalk security

Security advisories are the vulnerabilities the maintainers disclosed on GitHub, with the versions that fix them; many advisories can mean careful disclosure as much as weak code.

Security advisoriesNone publishedNo advisories in the repository’s Security tab

Advisories read from GitHub on 12 November 2026.

Artalk license: is it open source?

Artalk uses MIT, an open-source license approved by the OSI.

  1. October 2018First published on GitHub under LGPL.
  2. 12 September 2023Changed to MIT. Commit: chore: relicense from LGPLv3 to MIT
  3. TodayMIT.

Artalk for developers

Written in

  • Go 50%
  • TypeScript 37%
  • Vue 7%
  • SCSS 4%
  • HTML 2%
  • Other 2%

Getting involved

Contributing guideYesCONTRIBUTING.mdOpen issues78On GitHub
Authors, 90 days10Of 23 commits
Donations2 waysBuy Me a Coffee, own page

Language shares are GitHub’s count of the code in the repository.

Alternatives to Artalk

  • remark42comment engine 81 health · MIT · 5.6k stars
  • AnswerA Q&A platform software for teams at any scales. Whether it's a community forum, help center, or knowledge… 68 health · Apache-2.0 · 15.7k stars
  • Issoa Disqus alternative 52 health · MIT · 5.3k stars
  • MastodonYour self-hosted, globally interconnected microblogging community 88 health · AGPL-3.0 · 50.6k stars
  • MisskeyA completely free and open interplanetary-microblogging platform 81 health · AGPL-3.0 · 11.4k stars

All 18 projects in Social networks & forums

Questions about Artalk

Is Artalk open source?

Yes. Artalk is published under MIT, an OSI-approved open-source license.

Is Artalk still maintained?

Its health score is 54 of 100 (actively developed). It had 23 commits in the last 90 days, the latest on 6 November 2026, and its latest release came out on 25 October 2026.

Did Artalk change its license?

Yes. It moved from LGPL to MIT on 12 September 2023.

How do I run Artalk?

You can run it with Docker and as an app for macOS, Windows, Linux, including ARM. The README on GitHub has the exact steps.

What is Artalk written in?

Artalk is written in Go (50% of the code), with TypeScript (37%) and Vue (7%), by GitHub’s count of the repository.

What languages is Artalk available in?

The repository has interface translations for 8 languages: Chinese, English, French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian and Turkish.

What are the alternatives to Artalk?

Close alternatives in the Social networks & forums category include remark42, Answer, Isso.