Software Development Communities Report

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Executive Summary

We analyzed 161 software development communities listed on Hive Index to understand where people gather, what these groups offer, and which communities attract the most interest.

The big picture: software development communities are broad and fragmented, with many small groups and a few very large outliers.

Source: Hive Index community database · Updated 2026-06-09

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Communities
161
Platforms
15
Avg members
1.2M
Median members
8K

Where Software Development Communities Are Hosted

  • Discord: 43 communities (27%)
  • Independent Platforms: 38 communities (24%)
  • Slack: 32 communities (20%)
  • Reddit: 27 communities (17%)
  • Github: 9 communities (6%)
  • LinkedIn: 4 communities (2%)
  • Nas.io: 3 communities (2%)
  • X / Twitter: 2 communities (1%)
  • Telegram: 2 communities (1%)
  • WhatsApp: 2 communities (1%)
  • Discourse: 2 communities (1%)
  • Skool: 2 communities (1%)
  • Quora: 1 communities (1%)
  • Facebook: 1 communities (1%)
  • Meetup: 1 communities (1%)
  • Discord
    43(27%)
  • Independent Platforms
    Independent Platforms
    38(24%)
  • Slack
    32(20%)
  • Reddit
    27(17%)
  • Github
    9(6%)
  • LinkedIn
    4(2%)
  • Nas.io
    3(2%)
  • X / Twitter
    2(1%)

Format mix

  • Chat communities
    73(45%)
  • Forum / feed-based
    69(43%)
  • Other platforms
    17(11%)
  • Private membership
    2(1%)

Chat communities is most common (45%), but forum / feed-based is also well represented (43%).

Discord leads, but Independent Platforms and Slack also represent meaningful shares.

Audience Size & Access

Community size

  • Tiny: 2 communities (1%)
  • Small: 10 communities (6%)
  • Medium: 18 communities (11%)
  • Large: 38 communities (24%)
  • Huge: 29 communities (18%)
  • Massive: 19 communities (12%)
  • Gigantic: 12 communities (7%)
  • Tiny
    <20 members
    2(1%)
  • Small
    20-100 members
    10(6%)
  • Medium
    100-1,000 members
    18(11%)
  • Large
    1,000-10,000 members
    38(24%)
  • Huge
    10,000-100,000 members
    29(18%)
  • Massive
    100,000-1M members
    19(12%)
  • Gigantic
    1M+ members
    12(7%)

33 communities have unknown member counts.

Free vs paid

  • Free to join: 143 communities (89%)
  • Paid or apply-to-join: 18 communities (11%)

The average is much higher than the median (1.2M vs 8K), which usually means a few large groups are pulling the average up.

How Software Development Differs From Other Categories

Software Development is smaller, more platform-diverse, and more chat-heavy, compared with typical Hive Index topics.

MetricSoftware DevelopmentHive Index average
Free to join89%85%
Median members8K25K
Average members1.2M683K
Paid or apply-to-join11%15%
Live chat59%37%
Discord share27%16%

Feature Mix

Common features appear in at least 15% of listings.

Common Features

  • Live Chat: 95 communities (59%)
  • Forum: 92 communities (57%)
  • Online/Offline Events: 44 communities (27%)
  • Job Board: 30 communities (19%)
  • Newsletter: 30 communities (19%)
  • Live Chat
    59%
  • Forum
    57%
  • Online/Offline Events
    27%
  • Job Board
    19%
  • Newsletter
    19%

Niche Features

  • Courses: 13 communities (8%)
  • Member Perks: 10 communities (6%)
  • Paid Community: 10 communities (6%)
  • Requires Application: 10 communities (6%)
  • Pairing: 7 communities (4%)
  • Tools: 5 communities (3%)
  • Token: 1 communities (1%)
  • Courses
    8%
  • Member Perks
    6%
  • Paid Community
    6%
  • Requires Application
    6%
  • Pairing
    4%
  • Tools
    3%
  • Token
    1%

Live Chat appears on 59% of listings.

What Visitors Click

Outbound clicks / mo
938

Platform supply vs. clicks

PlatformCommunitiesShare of communitiesOutbound clicksShare of clicks
Discord4327%
41745%
Independent Platforms3824%
677%
Slack3220%
26929%
Reddit2717%
586%
Github96%
111%
LinkedIn42%
101%
Nas.io32%
738%
X / Twitter21%
40%

Share is calculated within this topic.

Discord hosts 27% of listings and 45% of clicks, so supply and interest line up.

Most-clicked formats

  • Chat communities
    693(75%)
  • Forum / feed-based
    134(14%)
  • Other platforms
    98(11%)
  • Private membership
    4(0%)

Most-clicked features

  • Live Chat
    832(90%)
  • Job Board
    393(42%)
  • Online/Offline Events
    371(40%)
  • Newsletter
    238(26%)
  • Forum
    232(25%)
  • Pairing
    131(14%)

Most-clicked size ranges

  • Large
    326(35%)
  • Huge
    230(25%)
  • Medium
    104(11%)
  • Massive
    78(8%)
  • Small
    71(8%)

Top-clicked listings

  • Nikist Hacker club
    69(7%)
  • Freeflow
    63(7%)
  • Programmers Palace
    49(5%)

Most clicks go to chat communities and forum / feed-based communities.

Community Quality & Ratings

Rating breakdown

  • 7(100%)
  • 0(0%)
  • 0(0%)
  • 0(0%)
  • 0(0%)

7 reviews across 5 communities · 5.0 average rating.

Among highly rated communities

  • Live Chatover-indexes100%vs 59% overall
  • Job Boardover-indexes40%vs 19% overall
  • Online/Offline Eventsover-indexes40%vs 27% overall
  • Requires Applicationover-indexes40%vs 6% overall
  • Coursesover-indexes20%vs 8% overall

Based on 5 communities rated 4+ stars.

Highly rated examples

Among reviewed communities, highly rated groups often include live chat, job board, and online/offline events.

Methodology & FAQ

Methodology

This report uses communities in the Hive Index database tagged as Software Development. We exclude removed or suppressed listings. Member counts, traffic, features, reviews, and ratings may vary by source and are updated periodically.

  • •Last updated 2026-06-09

FAQ

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