RunOnVPS

Comparison · self-hosted file sync and sharing

Nextcloud vs Seafile

Nextcloud: Self-hosted file sync share and collaboration platform — a safe home for all your data.
Seafile: Open-source cloud storage system with file sync sharing and team collaboration.

Compare requirementsSize them together

Requirements

Side-by-side VPS specs

Every value is taken from each app’s RunOnVPS dataset entry. Badges show whether a figure is an official project figure or a RunOnVPS estimate — never compare the two as if they were equal.

Nextcloud vs Seafile hardware requirements and facts
ResourceNextcloudSeafile
Minimum RAM2GB Estimated2GB Official
Minimum CPU2 Estimated2 Official
Minimum disk10GB Estimated10GB Official
Recommended RAM4GB Estimated2GB Official
Recommended CPU2 Estimated2 Official
Recommended diskNot stated Not statedNot stated Not stated
Suggested VPS tier (our sizing)4 GB RAM tier2 GB RAM tier
GPUNot requiredNot required
Docker supportYesYes
LicenceAGPL-3.0AGPL-3.0 (server core)
GitHub stars3726015374
Commercial alternativeGoogle Workspace (Drive)Dropbox
CategoryMedia / Photos / FilesMedia / Photos / Files

Disk figures describe the application footprint recorded in the dataset. Personal media, documents, backups and other user data can require substantially more storage. Full source notes: Nextcloud requirements · Seafile requirements.

Who should pick it

Nextcloud

Pick Nextcloud if you want the broader platform — file sync, sharing and collaboration as a self-hosted home for all your data — and accept that its sizing here is estimated, because the official manual specifies memory per PHP process rather than for a whole machine.

See the full Nextcloud requirements →

Who should pick it

Seafile

Pick Seafile if file sync and sharing is the job and you want published whole-machine figures: its official minimum and recommended spec for the Community Edition are both 2 GB RAM / 2 cores.

See the full Seafile requirements →

Verdict

The short version

  • Seafile is the only one of the pair with official whole-machine minimums in our dataset, and its recommended RAM (2 GB) maps to a smaller tier than Nextcloud’s estimated recommended 4 GB.
  • Both are AGPL-3.0 at the server core; Seafile’s desktop client and web UI carry their own licences (GPLv2 and Apache-2.0).
  • Their catalogued commercial alternatives differ: Nextcloud is listed against Google Workspace (Drive), Seafile against Dropbox.
  • Nextcloud has the larger GitHub audience in our dataset (~37k vs ~15k stars; Seafile’s count is its front-page repository).

Neither verdict nor table scores the apps against each other — the right pick depends on the job, the licence you can accept, and how much of the spec is published rather than estimated. If you plan to run either alongside other apps, add it to a multi-app VPS estimate →