Asgaros Forum vs bbPress (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Asgaros Forum and bbPress share a 2.0 GPA, both are free, so the choice depends on which features you need.
Checked Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
They get the same grade on all five counts.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Which one is for you
Pick Asgaros Forum if
- Fits if you run WordPress and want a free forum with polls and basic moderation
- Works for small communities that don't need a paid license
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you don't use WordPress, as it runs nowhere else
- Not for you if you want paid support, because help comes from a public support forum
- Too light for a larger community that wants named integrations, as only myCRED is listed
- Watch out: you do the hosting, backups and updates yourself
Pick bbPress if
- Fits if you already run WordPress and want a simple board on your own domain
- Works for people who prefer small open-source software to a hosted platform
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you don't run WordPress, as it works nowhere else
- Not for you if you want a hosted forum, because updates, backups and spam handling are yours
- Too light for member profiles or attachments out of the box, which need other plugins
- Watch out: hosting and any add-on plugins are costs the free price leaves out
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAAsgaros ForumFair | 2.0GPAbbPressFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CThe plugin is $0 and the maker accepts donations, but it needs a WordPress site you host, which is where the cost sits. | CThe plugin is $0, but it only runs on a WordPress site you host yourself, so the real cost is that hosting. Software you must host sits at a C. |
| Free plan and trial | BNo paid tiers exist and nothing is capped. You still need your own hosting. | BThe whole plugin is free under the GPL with no caps. You still need your own WordPress hosting. |
| Features | CProfiles, polls, reactions, uploads, moderation and several instances are there. The listing shows only one integration and no paid support. | CForums, topics, replies, RSS and Akismet are built in. The listing says it is deliberately minimal and extra features come from other plugins. |
| Ease of use | DIt is installed, hosted and updated by you on WordPress. | DIt needs a WordPress install, your own hosting, and you handle updates and backups. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only, inside WordPress, with myCRED the only integration named. | CWeb only, inside WordPress. Akismet is the one named integration. |
| Best for | a light forum with polls inside WordPress | a plain forum inside a WordPress site |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Asgaros Forum and bbPress. How we grade
Price against what you get
Asgaros Forum has no paid plan and scores 1.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. bbPress has no paid plan and scores 1.7.
On this chart the two sit in the same place: the same score for the same starting price. Of the other course and community platforms on the chart, none scores higher than Asgaros Forum for less, and none scores higher than bbPress for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- bbPress is open source, according to its own site.
In commonFree planWebRSS readerCommunity
At a glance
| Asgaros Forum | bbPress | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| Starts at | Free | Free |
| Free plan | The plugin is free to download; the maker's site accepts donations. | The whole plugin is free under the GPL; you pay only for your own WordPress hosting and any add-on plugins you choose. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Asgaros | bbPress project (WordPress community) |
| Price read from | wordpress.org | bbpress.org |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Asgaros Forum
- It runs only inside WordPress and you host it yourself.
- The vendor lists no paid support plan; support is through its public support forum.
- It lists a myCRED integration but no other named integrations.
bbPress
- It runs only inside WordPress, so you need a WordPress site and your own hosting.
- It is deliberately minimal: many features come from separate plugins you choose and maintain.
- It has no hosted version, so updates, backups and spam handling are up to you.
Key features
Asgaros Forum
- WordPress-native forum
- A forum page is created at install and posts are written in the WordPress editor.
- Profiles and members list
- Members get profiles and a searchable members list, plus notifications and feeds.
- Polls, reactions and uploads
- Topics support polls, reactions and file uploads.
- Moderation and permissions
- Post approval, banning, reporting, moderators, permissions and user groups.
- Multiple instances
- Can run several forum instances, in several languages, and is compatible with WordPress multisite.
- Customizable theme
- A responsive theme whose colors and fonts can be changed.
bbPress
- Forums inside WordPress
- Runs on the same user accounts and admin area as the rest of a WordPress site, with a one-click install.
- Multisite forums
- Can divide a site into sections and let users create content in them.
- Spam protection
- Supports Akismet for filtering spam posts.
- RSS feeds
- Provides feeds for forums, topics and replies.
- Customizable templates
- Forum templates can be restyled and overridden in a WordPress theme.
- Plugin extensions
- Extra features such as profiles or attachments come from WordPress's plugin system rather than the core plugin.
Plans
Asgaros Forum
Asgaros Forum$0
Free WordPress plugin installed on your own site; no paid tiers are listed.
bbPress
bbPress$0
Free GPL plugin that you host yourself on your own WordPress site.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Asgaros Forum or bbPress?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Asgaros Forum and bbPress are free to use.
Which has a free plan, Asgaros Forum or bbPress?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Asgaros Forum and bbPress have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.