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Compare bbPress vs PhpBB 3 vs vBulletin 3.8

Comparison
Results
bbPress Logo
bbPress
PhpBB 3 Logo
PhpBB 3
vBulletin 3.8 Logo
vBulletin 3.8
+
Select
Version 2.0 3.0.10 3.8.1 -
Last Release September 21, 2011 January 2nd, 2012 January 27, 2009 -
License GPL License GPL License Proprietary License -
Price Free Free $ 180 -
Resources Official Website »
Download » 		Official Website »
Download » 		Official Website »
Download » 		-
Ergonomy Easy to Use Perfection Perfection -
Installation Fast & Simple Fast & Simple Fast & Simple -
Administration Efficient & Fast Efficient & Fast Efficient & Fast -
Community Size Medium Community Huge Community Huge Community -
Our Opinion -
User Reviews
5.2/10 (44 votes)
8.5/10 (722 votes)
5.1/10 (110 votes)
-
Demonstration bbPress Demo
Open Demo » 		PhpBB 3 Demo
Open Demo » 		vBulletin 3.8 Demo
Open Demo » 		-
Server Requirements bbPress PhpBB 3 vBulletin 3.8
Operating System
  • GNU/LinuxGNU/Linux
  • BSD UnixBSD Unix
  • Microsoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows
  • Apple Mac OSApple Mac OS
  • GNU/LinuxGNU/Linux
  • BSD UnixBSD Unix
  • Microsoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows
  • Apple Mac OSApple Mac OS
  • GNU/LinuxGNU/Linux
  • BSD UnixBSD Unix
  • Microsoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows
  • Apple Mac OSApple Mac OS
 -
Web Server
  • Apache 1.3
  • Apache 2.0/2.2
  • Microsoft IIS
  • Lighttpd
  • Apache 1.3
  • Apache 2.0/2.2
  • Microsoft IIS
  • Lighttpd
  • Nginx
  • Apache 1.3
  • Apache 2.0/2.2
  • Microsoft IIS
  • Lighttpd
  • Nginx
 -
Languages
  • PHP 5
  • PHP 4
  • PHP 5
  • PHP 5
 -
Databases
  • MySQL
  • Postgresql
  • SQLite
  • MySQL
  • Postgresql
  • SQLite
  • Microsoft SQL Server
  • Oracle
  • MySQL
 -
Browsers & Clients
Requirements
Compatible
Browsers
Mozilla FirefoxMozilla Firefox
Internet ExplorerInternet Explorer
Google ChromeGoogle Chrome
OperaOpera
Apple SafariApple Safari
KonquerorKonqueror
Mozilla SeaMonkeyMozilla SeaMonkey
Mozilla FirefoxMozilla Firefox
Internet ExplorerInternet Explorer
Google ChromeGoogle Chrome
OperaOpera
Apple SafariApple Safari
KonquerorKonqueror
Mozilla SeaMonkeyMozilla SeaMonkey
Mozilla FirefoxMozilla Firefox
Internet ExplorerInternet Explorer
Google ChromeGoogle Chrome
OperaOpera
Apple SafariApple Safari
KonquerorKonqueror
Mozilla SeaMonkeyMozilla SeaMonkey
-
Plugins/
Technologies
  • Javascript
  • AJAX
  • AJAX
  • Javascript
  • AJAX
 -
Localization No Yes Yes -
Languages No.
Supported Languages:
Albanian
Basque
Bulgarian
Portuguese (Brazilian)
Belarusian
Catalan
Chinese (Simplified)
Czech
German
Danish
Estonian
Spanish
Finnish
French
Galician
Greek
Croatian
Hungarian
Indonesian
Hebrew
Persian
Italian
Japanese
Kurdish
Lithuanian
Dutch
Norwegian
Polish
Portuguese
Romanian
Serbian
Russian
Arabic
Swedish
Slovene
Sindhi
Slovak
Thai
Turkish
Ukrainian
English (British)
English (American)
Vietnamese
Chinese (Traditional)
Supported Languages:
Portuguese (Brazilian)
Chinese (Simplified)
German
Danish
French
Greek
Italian
Dutch
Portuguese
Romanian
Swedish
English (British)
English (American)
Chinese (Traditional)
-
Compatibility with
Smartphones
Compatible
SmartPhones 		No.
  • AndroidAndroid
  • iPhoneiPhone
  • BlackBerryBlackBerry
  • Windows Phone 7Windows Phone 7
  • Symbian Phones <em>(Nokia)</em>Symbian Phones (Nokia)
  • HP WebOS <em>(ex-Palm)</em>HP WebOS (ex-Palm)
No. -
Distribution No.
  • Android Market
  • Apple Store
  • Nokia Ovi Store
  • BlackBerry App World
 No. -
Threads / Topics bbPress PhpBB 3 vBulletin 3.8
Forum Style Flat Flat Flat/Threaded -
Forum Organization
  • Forum Categories
  • Sub Sections
  • Forum Categories
  • URL Redirection Forum
  • Sub Sections
  • Forum Categories
  • URL Redirection Forum
  • Sub Sections
  • Trashcan Forum
 -
Topic Tags - Plugin - -
Sticky Threads Yes Yes Yes -
Thread Icons No Yes Yes -
Hot Topics - - Yes -
Detect
Duplicate Threads 		No Plugin Yes -
Hidden Topics Plugin No Yes -
Unread Topics Yes Yes Yes -
Announcements - Yes - -
Forum Posts bbPress PhpBB 3 vBulletin 3.8
Message
Editing Form
  • Plain Text
  • Rich Text Editor
  • Preview Button
  • WYSIWYG Editor
  • Preview Button
 -
Post Editing Format
  • Plain
  • HTML
  • HTML
  • BBCode
  • Plain
  • BBCode
 -
Spell Checker - Plugin No -
Emoticons No Yes Yes -
Quick Reply Box Yes Yes Yes -
Syntax Highlighting - Plugin Plugin -
Message Quoting No Yes Yes -
Message Rating No Plugin Yes -
Attachments No Yes Yes -
Image Attachment No.
  • Upload via Classic Attachments
  • Use BBCode or HTML
 No. -
Forum Features bbPress PhpBB 3 vBulletin 3.8
Poll Creation No Yes Yes -
Private Messages No Yes Yes -
Instant Messaging No Yes Yes -
Calendar No No Yes -
Members List No Yes Yes -
Online Users List No Yes Yes -
Technical Features bbPress PhpBB 3 vBulletin 3.8
Bundled Software No. No.
  • Website Home Page
  • Blog
  • Bug Tracker
  • Projet Manager
  • Pictures Album Manager
 -
RSS/Atom
Syndication
  • RSS 2.0
  • ATOM 1.0
  • RSS 2.0
 -
Friendly URLs Yes Yes No -
Remote Control
  • XML/RPC
 No. No. -
Cache System - Yes Yes -
Template Engine No.
  • Custom Template Engine
  • Custom Template Engine
 -
Post By Email - No - -
User Profiles &
Options		 bbPress PhpBB 3 vBulletin 3.8
User Profile Yes Yes Yes -
Avatars Yes Yes Yes -
Signatures No Yes Yes -
Ranks No Yes Yes -
Bookmark Threads Yes Yes Yes -
User Selectable
Themes		 - Yes - -
Email Notifications No Yes Yes -
Export
Private Messages		 No Yes Yes -
Payment
Subscriptions		 - No Yes -
Security & Spam
Protection
CAPTCHA Yes Yes Yes -
CAPTCHA Complexity -
Abnormal Behavior
Detection		 - No - -
Words Filtering No Yes Yes -
User Blacklist No Yes Yes -
IP Blocking No Yes Yes -
Customization bbPress PhpBB 3 vBulletin 3.8
Plugins Yes Yes
~433 Available Plugins.
Yes -
Plugin Installation -
Themes Yes Yes
~525 Available Themes.
 Yes -
Custom BBCodes - Yes Yes -
Custom Emoticons - Yes Yes -
Custom
Thread Icons		 - Yes Yes -
Custom
Profile Fields		 - Yes Yes -
Third Applications &
Websites
Social Networks No. No. -
CMS / Blog Bridges
  • WordPress
 No.
  • Drupal
  • Joomla
 -
User Accounts
Integration 		No.
No. -
Content Aggregation No. No. No. -
Moderation &
Threads Management		 bbPress PhpBB 3 vBulletin 3.8
Moderation No.
  • Pre-Moderation
  • Post-Moderation
  • Reactive Moderation
  • Distributed Moderation
  • Post-Moderation
 -
Moderator
per Section		 Yes Yes Yes -
Global Moderator Yes Yes Yes -
Move Threads Yes Yes Yes -
Shadow Topics Plugin Yes Yes -
Close/Lock Threads Yes Yes Yes -
Users
Management
User Groups Yes Yes Yes -
User Registration No.
  • Free Registration
  • Registration needs Approval
  • Invitation Only
  • User Account created by Administrator
  • Confirmation sent by email for validation
 No. -
New Users
Limitation 		- Yes - -
Guest Posting No Yes Yes -
Multiple
Administrators		 Yes Yes Yes -
Send Warnings
to Users		 No Yes Yes -
Access Control List No Yes Yes -
User Banishment Yes Yes Yes -
Mass Mailing No Yes Yes -
Installation &
Upgrading		 bbPress PhpBB 3 vBulletin 3.8
Installation Method Installation Wizard Installation Wizard Installation Wizard -
Upgrade Method Upgrade Wizard Upgrade Wizard Upgrade Wizard -
Update
Notifications		 No Yes Yes -
Forum Migration - Yes - -
Database
Management
Backup Database No Yes Yes -
Prune Database No Yes Yes -
Restore Database No Yes Yes -
Administration
Tools
Statistics No Yes Yes -
Error/Notice
Log Viewer		 - Yes No -
Tasks Scheduler - Yes Yes -
W3C Norms &
Accessibility
HTML / XHTML
  • XHTML 1.1 Strict
  • XHTML 1.0 Strict
  • XHTML 1.0 Transitional
 -
Stylesheets (CSS)
  • CSS 2
  • CSS 2
  • CSS 2
 -
Accessibility (WAI)
  • AAA
  • AA
  • AA
 -
UTF-8 Support Yes Yes Yes -
W3C Norms Yes Yes Yes -
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