saasrankedSoftware, ranked on the facts

customer community platform · MyBB Group

MyBB

Free, open-source PHP forum software with a plugin system, run on your own server.

47/100

#7 of 8 customer community platforms
Facts checked 9 Oct 2026

In short

MyBB suits teams that can run their own PHP server and want a free forum with group permissions, bans, spam tools and a plugin system1,5,6,7. MyBB's published pages describe no hosted plan, so you install and host it yourself2,12. The documentation names no single sign-on, API, integrations or compliance reports10,11.

Best for: Teams with their own web host who want a free forum with built-in moderation tools.

Where the points come from

Price12 of 18
Members and access13 of 23
Moderation and answers6 of 13
Connections0 of 19
Your data13 of 13
Security3 of 14

Price 12 of 18 points

RuleWhat is publishedPoints
Free planNot publishedMyBB is software you download and run yourself; the home and download pages describe no hosted plan, so a free hosted plan is not published1,2.0 / 6
Cheapest paid plan with a custom domain$0No hosted plan is described; the software is free to download under LGPL-3.0, so counted as $01,2,3.12 / 12

Members and access 13 of 23 points

RuleWhat is publishedPoints
Unlimited membersYesSelf-hosted software; the requirements page mentions no member or user limit4.6 / 6
Custom domainYesYou upload it to your own web server and set your own forum URL in the install guide12.3 / 3
Single sign-onNot publishedNot published on the vendor's home page, docs index or administration docs1,10,11.0 / 10
Groups with their own permissionsYesPermissions are set per user group, globally and for individual forums7.4 / 4

Moderation and answers 6 of 13 points

RuleWhat is publishedPoints
Moderation toolsApprove before posting, Ban or suspend members, Spam or word filtersFirst posts can be held for review; accounts, IPs and emails can be banned; CAPTCHA and StopForumSpam checks exist5,6.6 / 8
Accepted answersNot publishedNot published on the vendor's home page or documentation index1,10.0 / 5

Connections 0 of 19 points

RuleWhat is publishedPoints
Named integrationsNot publishedNot published: Slack, Salesforce, Zendesk and HubSpot are not named on MyBB's home page or docs index1,10.0 / 8
Public APINot publishedNot published on the vendor's docs index, which lists plugin hooks but no API reference10.0 / 8
WebhooksNot publishedNot published on the vendor's docs index or home page1,10.0 / 3

Your data 13 of 13 points

RuleWhat is publishedPoints
Export your community dataYesAdmin panel backups offer a download of selected database tables9.6 / 6
Open sourceYesRepository and README state GNU LGPL v33.4 / 4
Self-hostingYesDownload page offers the .zip; the install guide covers uploading to your own web server2,12.3 / 3

Security 3 of 14 points

RuleWhat is publishedPoints
SOC 2 Type II or ISO 27001Not publishedNot published on the vendor's home page, docs index or GitHub page1,3,10.0 / 8
Written uptime guaranteeNot publishedNot published on the vendor's home page or docs; no hosted service is described1,10.0 / 3
Two-factor sign-inYesAdmins can turn on two-factor sign-in; the docs say it is only for administrator accounts8.3 / 3

The rule behind each line: how we score customer community platforms.

Plans and prices

As the vendor lists them, before tax. Prices are in US dollars unless the plan shows euros; the points use US dollars, with euros converted at the ECB rate.

PlanPrice as listedPer monthNotes
MyBB (self-hosted)Any size of communityFree1,2,3$0LGPL-3.0 software; you supply the server

MyBB lists no hosted or paid plans; the site offers downloads and donations1.

Strengths

  • Free and open source under LGPL-3.03.
  • Permissions can be set for each user group, globally and per forum7.
  • Spam controls include CAPTCHA, StopForumSpam checks and review of first posts5.
  • Admins can download a database backup from the admin panel9.

Limits

  • No hosted plan is described, so you need your own server1,4.
  • Two-factor sign-in is limited to administrator accounts8.
  • The documentation index lists no REST API, webhooks or single sign-on10.
  • The spam page describes no word filter5.

Other customer community platforms

  1. 1
    DiscourseCompanies that want a moderated, open-source support forum on their own domain
    93/100
    $100/mocheapest paid plan with a custom domain
  2. 2
    NodeBBTeams that want a forum on their own domain with an API and the option to self-host
    64/100
    $20/mocheapest paid plan with a custom domain
  3. 3
    BettermodeCompanies that want a branded customer community with CRM and support-desk integrations
    63/100
    $149/mocheapest paid plan with a custom domain
  4. 4
    Mighty NetworksBrands that want a hosted community with courses and events, with an API on Scale and above
    62/100
    $79.17/mocheapest paid plan with a custom domain

All 8 customer community platforms

Sources

  1. MyBB: free and open source forum software, MyBB. Accessed 9 Oct 2026.
  2. Download MyBB, MyBB. Accessed 9 Oct 2026.
  3. mybb/mybb, GitHub. Accessed 9 Oct 2026.
  4. Requirements, MyBB Docs. Accessed 9 Oct 2026.
  5. Spam, MyBB Docs. Accessed 9 Oct 2026.
  6. Banning, MyBB Docs. Accessed 9 Oct 2026.
  7. Permissions, MyBB Docs. Accessed 9 Oct 2026.
  8. Using Two-Factor Authentication with MyBB, MyBB Docs. Accessed 9 Oct 2026.
  9. Backups, MyBB Docs. Accessed 9 Oct 2026.
  10. MyBB documentation index, MyBB Docs. Accessed 9 Oct 2026.
  11. Administration, MyBB Docs. Accessed 9 Oct 2026.
  12. Installation, MyBB Docs. Accessed 9 Oct 2026.

Website: www.mybb.com · Markdown version · We are not affiliated with MyBB Group.