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Comparison · Collab

Flame vs Komga

A side-by-side editorial comparison of Flame and Komga — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.

Flame vs Komga: at a glance

FeatureFlameKomga
SectorCollabCollab
Velocity score0.06.3
Sparks · 30d01
Top themesself-hosting, homelab, dashboard, dormantfrontend-rewrite, beta, self-hosted, ebook-formats
Last editorial update2h ago16h ago
WebsiteVisit →Visit →

What is Flame?

Self-hosted dashboard that finished its feature arc and stopped shipping in 2023.

Flame is a self-hosted startpage for homelab services — app tiles, bookmarks, weather, and a search bar. The feature set it set out to build was finished across 2021 and 2022: custom app descriptions, Docker secrets support, a secondary search provider, and a custom theme editor. The most recent release in this feed is v2.3.1 from July 2023, and it is entirely bug fixes.

Read the full Flame trajectory →

What is Komga?

After two years of quiet fixes, Komga puts a whole new web UI in front of users.

Komga's recent history is almost entirely maintenance — archive-format edge cases, EPUB table-of-contents parsing, Kobo and OPDS compatibility, and a long tail of dependency bumps and translations. Release 1.26.0 breaks that pattern by shipping NextUI, a rewritten web interface, in beta and served alongside the existing one from the same server. The old UI remains the default, and the new one is reached from a sidebar link or a /next path, with a published list of what is still missing.

Read the full Komga trajectory →

Flame vs Komga: editorial side-by-side

F
Flame
COLLAB
0.0

Self-hosted dashboard that finished its feature arc and stopped shipping in 2023.

◆ Current state

Flame is a self-hosted startpage for homelab services — app tiles, bookmarks, weather, and a search bar. The feature set it set out to build was finished across 2021 and 2022: custom app descriptions, Docker secrets support, a secondary search provider, and a custom theme editor. The most recent release in this feed is v2.3.1 from July 2023, and it is entirely bug fixes.

◆ Where it's heading

The arc reads as a project reaching completion rather than one under active development. Later releases shifted from adding capability to correcting the edges of what already existed — search-provider interactions, iOS input rendering, theme editor field sizes, label wording. There has been nothing since.

◆ Prediction

Nothing in these entries suggests further releases; anyone deploying Flame should treat the current version as the final one unless the project resumes.

K
Komga
COLLAB
6.3

After two years of quiet fixes, Komga puts a whole new web UI in front of users.

◆ Current state

Komga's recent history is almost entirely maintenance — archive-format edge cases, EPUB table-of-contents parsing, Kobo and OPDS compatibility, and a long tail of dependency bumps and translations. Release 1.26.0 breaks that pattern by shipping NextUI, a rewritten web interface, in beta and served alongside the existing one from the same server. The old UI remains the default, and the new one is reached from a sidebar link or a /next path, with a published list of what is still missing.

◆ Where it's heading

This is a staged frontend replacement rather than a cutover: two UIs on one web server, a v2 referential API landing in the same release to back the new client, and a hotfix a few hours later for NextUI CSS layers under Tomcat. The backend is simplifying in parallel — RAR5 support moved to plain Java and libarchive was dropped from the Docker image and the tray app, removing a native dependency from the build. Feature work outside the UI stays narrow and format-focused.

◆ Prediction

Expect a run of point releases closing the gaps in NextUI's feature list and hardening the two-UI serving path, with the beta label staying on until parity is reached. A default switch is unlikely before the missing features land.

Alternatives to Flame and Komga

Other Collab products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either Flame or Komga.

See all Flame alternatives → · See all Komga alternatives →

Recent activity from Flame and Komga

Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.

  1. 1d agoKomgaKomga 1.26.0 ships NextUI, a rewritten web interface, in beta
  2. 1d agoKomgaRelease 1.26.1
  3. 1mo agoKomgaRelease 1.25.0
  4. 3mo agoKomgaRelease 1.24.4
  5. 4mo agoKomgaRelease 1.24.3
  6. 4mo agoKomgaRelease 1.24.2
  7. 3y agoFlameBug fixes for local search, iOS input styling, and theme editor
  8. 4y agoFlameCustom theme editor and secondary search provider
  9. 4y agoFlameIn-app location detection and tightened file permissions
  10. 4y agoFlameLocal search covers app descriptions; background task tuning
  11. 4y agoFlameCustom app descriptions and a cluster deployment fix
  12. 4y agoFlameDocker secrets support

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Flame and Komga?

They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. Komga is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 0.0), with 1 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.

Is Flame better than Komga?

Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. Komga is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 0.0), with 1 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Collab products to evaluate alongside.

What are the best alternatives to Flame?

Top Flame alternatives in Collab are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Flame alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/flame-dashboard for the full list with editorial commentary on each.

What are the best alternatives to Komga?

Top Komga alternatives in Collab are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Komga alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/komga for the full list with editorial commentary on each.