r/homelab

Community Overview
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reddit.com/r/homelab/
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About r/homelab

Welcome to your friendly /r/homelab, where techies and sysadmin from everywhere are welcome to share their labs, projects, builds, etc.

The community at a glance

r/homelab is a Subreddit for DevOps Engineers, Programmers, and Self-Hosters with roughly 1.1M members. It has been around since 2012. It has both a forum and a live chat communication style. On the Hive Index it ranks #1 in the Self-Hosting communities list and #4 in the DevOps communities list.

Roughly 234K members have joined in the past year. Popular discussion topics include Frustration, Storage, and Server. Common discussion themes are Advice Requests and Solution Requests. Product recommendations often mention ups, homelab, and switch.

On Reddit
Established 2012
1.1M Members

Community Topics

Community Features

Forum

This community has a forum

Chat

Only 9% of Self-Hosting communities have live chat

This community has a realtime chat

Subreddit Analysis

via GummySearch
Yearly: +234K members
Growth: +26.5% / year

Member growth over time

All time (yearly)

  • 2013: 5K members
  • 2014: 10K members
  • 2015: 12K members
  • 2016: 25K members
  • 2017: 43K members
  • 2018: 54K members
  • 2019: 94K members
  • 2020: 126K members
  • 2021: 95K members
  • 2023: 161K members
  • 2024: 115K members
  • 2025: 177K members
  • 2026: 203K members

Past year (monthly)

  • Dec: 18K members
  • Jan: 19K members
  • Feb: 18K members
  • Mar: 35K members
  • Apr: 18K members
  • May: 18K members
  • Jun: 18K members
  • Jul: 18K members
  • Aug: 20K members
  • Sep: 16K members
  • Oct: 17K members
  • Nov: 5K members

Themes

  • Advice Requests
    7 posts in the past month
    1. Need advice on upgrading homelab/self-hosting computer
    2. Enterprise POE/POE+ switch - Advice
    3. Looking for advice
    #1
    Advice Requests
    Need advice on upgrading homelab/self-hosting computer · Enterprise POE/POE+ switch - Advice · Looking for advice
    7
  • Solution Requests
    5 posts in the past month
    1. Want to set up a storage server for sister back home; how can I do this?
    2. Which server pc to use? dell poweredge t610 or acer at350f1
    3. StreamCopy: up to 100× faster than Explorer for folders with many small files – copy and multi-device sync on your own servers
    #2
    Solution Requests
    Want to set up a storage server for sister back home; how can I do this? · Which server pc to use? dell poweredge t610 or acer at350f1 · StreamCopy: up to 100× faster than Explorer for folders with many small files – copy and multi-device sync on your own servers
    5
  • Money Talk
    1 post in the past month
    1. The deals are you there!
    #3
    Money Talk
    The deals are you there!
    1
  • Pain & Anger
    1 post in the past month
    1. What's your worst failover horror story?
    #4
    Pain & Anger
    What's your worst failover horror story?
    1

Topics

  • Frustration
    17 posts in the past month
    #1
    Frustration
    17
  • Storage
    10 posts in the past month
    #2
    Storage
    10
  • Server
    10 posts in the past month
    #3
    Server
    10
  • Hardware
    8 posts in the past month
    #4
    Hardware
    8
  • Nas
    5 posts in the past month
    #5
    Nas
    5

Flair

  • Help
    38 posts in the past month
    1. Got from a friend
    2. Starting to lose interest because I’m broke. What are some projects I can do with what I have?
    3. IBM-OEM Seagate Exos X14 SAS Detected but Stuck “Not Ready”
    #1
    Help
    Got from a friend · Starting to lose interest because I’m broke. What are some projects I can do with what I have? · IBM-OEM Seagate Exos X14 SAS Detected but Stuck “Not Ready”
    38
  • Discussion
    19 posts in the past month
    1. The deals are you there!
    2. Rate my Server
    3. Way to power 6x 2.5” SSDs externally
    #2
    Discussion
    The deals are you there! · Rate my Server · Way to power 6x 2.5” SSDs externally
    19
  • Project Showcase: Hardware
    10 posts in the past month
    1. This hobby is very addicting...
    2. Hope to not see this machine for a few years!
    3. My first homelab setup!
    #3
    Project Showcase: Hardware
    This hobby is very addicting... · Hope to not see this machine for a few years! · My first homelab setup!
    10
  • Diagram
    3 posts in the past month
    1. Built a small SOC/sysadmin lab at home
    2. Built a small SOC/sysadmin lab at home
    3. Looking for a reality check [I hear diagrams are all the rage]
    #4
    Diagram
    Built a small SOC/sysadmin lab at home · Built a small SOC/sysadmin lab at home · Looking for a reality check [I hear diagrams are all the rage]
    3
  • Project Showcase: Operations
    3 posts in the past month
    1. Ready to take the plunge
    2. [Day 4] Proxmox installed but web UI wouldn't load - here's the fix
    3. StreamCopy: up to 100× faster than Explorer for folders with many small files – copy and multi-device sync on your own servers
    #5
    Project Showcase: Operations
    Ready to take the plunge · [Day 4] Proxmox installed but web UI wouldn't load - here's the fix · StreamCopy: up to 100× faster than Explorer for folders with many small files – copy and multi-device sync on your own servers
    3

Product recommendations

  • ups
    4 posts in the past month
    1. Best buys for a rack-mount UPS?
    2. Best All-Around mid-range UPS
    3. Best way to integrate a UPS?
    #1
    ups
    Best buys for a rack-mount UPS? · Best All-Around mid-range UPS · Best way to integrate a UPS?
    4
  • homelab
    4 posts in the past month
    1. Is this the best way to start my homelab journey?
    2. Best way to access a homelab from outside the network?
    3. Best way to access a homelab from outside the network?
    #2
    homelab
    Is this the best way to start my homelab journey? · Best way to access a homelab from outside the network? · Best way to access a homelab from outside the network?
    4
  • switch
    4 posts in the past month
    1. How I Chose the Best Managed Network Switch for My Home Lab
    2. Can anyone recommend a 8 port managed 2.5gb switch?
    3. Cheap 1G Cisco Managed Switch Recs
    #3
    switch
    How I Chose the Best Managed Network Switch for My Home Lab · Can anyone recommend a 8 port managed 2.5gb switch? · Cheap 1G Cisco Managed Switch Recs
    4
  • nas
    3 posts in the past month
    1. Looking for best nas/plex path with optiplex 9020 usff and 2 20tb seagate expansion
    2. Recommend a Cheap 2-bay NAS?
    3. Super basic / budget NAS setup recs?
    #4
    nas
    Looking for best nas/plex path with optiplex 9020 usff and 2 20tb seagate expansion · Recommend a Cheap 2-bay NAS? · Super basic / budget NAS setup recs?
    3
  • hypervisor
    3 posts in the past month
    1. Best OS for hypervisor, using the VMs interatively?
    2. Best OS for hypervisor, using the VMs interatively?
    3. What is best option for hypervisor platform on laptop / wifi?
    #5
    hypervisor
    Best OS for hypervisor, using the VMs interatively? · Best OS for hypervisor, using the VMs interatively? · What is best option for hypervisor platform on laptop / wifi?
    3
View full analysis on GummySearchSynced 11/5/2026

Frequently asked questions

Who is r/homelab for?
Best for DevOps Engineers and Programmers and Self-Hosters enthusiasts looking for a Reddit-based community with forum discussion, live chat.
Is r/homelab free to join?
This listing is not marked as paid-only. Access rules and any fees are decided by the community.
How many members does r/homelab have?
Roughly 1.1M members, based on figures reported by the community or its host. Member counts are approximate and change over time.
What platform is r/homelab on?
r/homelab runs on Reddit. Reddit communities (or "subreddits") are forum-based groups on the popular social news aggregation, web content rating, and discussion website Reddit. Reddit is commonly known as "the front page of the internet". Users submit content to the site such as links, text posts, and images, which are then voted up or down and discussed by other members. From investing Reddit communities, to professional ones, to ones just for laughs, you're likely to find a community for you on Reddit.
What topics does r/homelab cover?
On the Hive Index, r/homelab is organized under DevOps Engineers, Programmers, Self-Hosters.
How do I join r/homelab?
You can join r/homelab by clicking this link, or pressing the "Go to community" button above.
What are the DevOps communities like?
Communities for DevOps engineers and platform teams covering CI/CD, cloud infrastructure, Kubernetes, and site reliability. Discord and Slack host active practitioner communities, with discussion ranging from tool comparisons and troubleshooting to career paths and on-call culture.
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Monthly Stats

87
Views /mo
(+32%)
82
Visitors /mo
(+52%)
9
Referrals /mo
(-25%)

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