Freedom251 › Blogging Platforms
Known
What Known is
Known is an open-source publishing framework for shared websites, community sites, or a single-user blog. It lets users publish photos, notes, stories, songs, hashtags, and other content through an HTML or rich-text editor. Sites can be made private for personal writing or group discussion, and the responsive web interface works on any device. Updates can be distributed through RSS, XML, JSON, or KML feeds.
Customization options include custom domains, CSS, JavaScript, static pages, analytics, and plugins. The hosted group product lists connections to Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Foursquare, Soundcloud, LinkedIn, and webhooks, along with APIs and full data export. Known supports both hosted and self-hosted sites. Self-hosting requires a web server, PHP 8.1 or later, and MySQL, MariaDB, or MongoDB. Its free Basic service is listed as free, and the Known plan allows up to 200 authors. The platform is available on the web, as a self-hosted product, and through an API.
Who it suits
Known may suit individual creators, educators, learners, broadcasters, universities, or groups seeking a shared publishing site. It also fits users who want to self-host or customize a site with code.
What it does well
- Supports private sites and group discussions
- Publishes through four feed formats
- Custom domains, CSS, JavaScript, and plugins
- Offers data export and APIs
- Free Basic service is listed
What to know first
- Self-hosting requires a web server and specified databases
- Theme customization uses custom code
- Known plan is limited to 200 authors
Limits
The Known plan specifies unlimited space and up to 200 authors.
Plans
| Plan | Billed and limits | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Basic service | Basic service; specific limits not stated | Free |
| Known | Unlimited space · up to 200 authors · unlimited accounts | On request |
As withknown.com lists them, read 11 Oct 2026. The maker's own page has the final word.
Getting started
- Open https://www.withknown.com/
- Choose the free Basic service or the Known plan
- Use the hosted web service or install Known on a web server
- For self-hosting, prepare PHP 8.1 or above with MySQL, MariaDB, or MongoDB
- Add authors, publishing formats, domains, integrations, and privacy settings
Verdict
Known combines multiple publishing formats with privacy, customization, and self-hosting options. Consider the technical requirements if you plan to host it yourself.
Questions
Does Known have a free plan?
Yes. The Basic service plan is free.
Which platforms does Known support?
Known supports API, self-hosted, and web deployments.
Is Known open source?
Known describes its framework as open source.
Can a Known site use a custom domain?
Yes. Users can add a custom domain.
What integrations are listed?
The hosted group product lists Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Foursquare, Soundcloud, LinkedIn, and webhooks.
Facts from Known's own pages
- API
- Known documentation says every page is also an API endpoint and describes API calls authenticated with an HMAC signature using the user's API key. · docs.withknown.com, 11 Oct 2026
- Audience
- Known says its community includes broadcasters, universities, individual creators, technical early adopters, educators, and learners. · withknown.com, 11 Oct 2026
- Author limit
- 200 · withknown.com, 20 Sept 2026
- Blog analytics
- Yes · withknown.com, 20 Sept 2026
- Custom domain
- Yes · withknown.com, 20 Sept 2026
- Customization
- Users can add a custom domain, CSS, JavaScript, static pages, analytics, and plugins. · withknown.com, 11 Oct 2026
- Data and APIs
- The group product lists full data export and APIs, and says users can move between hosted and self-hosted sites with help from Known. · withknown.com, 11 Oct 2026
- Feeds
- Known provides updates via RSS, XML, JSON, or KML feeds. · withknown.com, 11 Oct 2026
- Free plan
- Yes · withknown.com, 20 Sept 2026
- Integrations
- The hosted group product lists connections to Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Foursquare, Soundcloud, LinkedIn, and webhooks. · withknown.com, 11 Oct 2026
- Open source
- Known describes its framework as open source and suitable for community sites or a single-user blog. · withknown.com, 11 Oct 2026
- Privacy
- The feature list says users can make their site private for personal thoughts or private group discussion. · withknown.com, 11 Oct 2026
- Privacy policy
- Known's privacy policy says it takes measures reasonably necessary to protect personal information and says customer-site privacy practices are the responsibility of those customers. · withknown.com, 11 Oct 2026
- Publishing
- The product supports photos, notes, stories, songs, hashtags, and an HTML or rich-text editor. · withknown.com, 11 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- Known lets any number of users publish posts, status updates, photographs, and other content to a shared site. · withknown.com, 11 Oct 2026
- Responsive web
- Known says its web interface is responsive and works on any device. · withknown.com, 11 Oct 2026
- Self-hosting
- Known can be installed on a web server; its documentation lists PHP 8.1 or above and MySQL, MariaDB, or MongoDB requirements. · docs.withknown.com, 11 Oct 2026
- Support
- Known's guides direct self-hosted users to the developer mailing list, GitHub comments, or the #knownchat IRC channel. · withknown.com, 11 Oct 2026
- Theme customization
- custom code · withknown.com, 20 Sept 2026
Where Known stands on Freedom251
- Blogging Platforms#25 of 125