The age old question in forum management. Which forum software is better? vBulletin or phpBB? To answer this question, I’ll run through a quick comparison chart between the two products.

vBulletin

Cost: $160 (owned), $85 (leased)

Installation: vBulletin is very easy to install. You upload the files, create your database and then follow the steps for the rest. vBulletin Install lays everything out in about 14 steps. You simply fill in the information and click the next button. It takes under 5 minutes.

Modifcations: This is where vBulletin crushes phpBB in my opinion. vBulletin has hundreds of mods for members to download for free. Everything from arcades, to sports books, to content management systems, to photo galleries or chat rooms. And not only does vBulletin have tons of mods, but they are all insanely easy to install. Rarely do you have to do a template modification. You simply upload the mod files, and import a product xml in your Admin Panel and the rest is done for you. This is what sets vBulletin a part from Phpbb.

Styles: There is no denying vBulletin is the better looking of the two forum softwares. I have seen some amazing custom vbulletin styles. Even the free template downloads look hot.

Admin Panel: vBulletin has an awesome admin panel. It’s very easy to use and everytime you install a new product, it will appear in your admin panel for easy customization. Everything you ever need to do in vBulletin can be done in the Admin Panel.

phpBB

Cost: Free

Installation: phpBB is also easy to install. You upload the files, create your database and follow the step by step instructions. There is very little editing you will have to do.

Modifications: Because phpBB is open source, a lot of the standard features in vBulletin are not standard in phpBB. If you plan on having a large forum with a lot of mods, running it with phpBB can be a pain. Finding the mods you want is a task in itself. Installing them is even harder. Most phpBB mods require intensive code modifications. Some require your to be knowledgable in php. It can take upwards to 30 minutes of template modifications to install one mod. Then you have to pray you didn’t miss a piece of code. phpBB really lacks in the modifications department.

Styles: phpBB has a wide variety of free styles for download. Some of them look the same, but with a custom header and a few button changes, you can have a decent looking forum. But I’m not going to lie. I have never seen a custom phpBB style that blows me away. I don’t know why it is, but they just never look as good as vBulletin.

Admin Panel: phpBB 2’s admin panel was a complete joke. It was horrible. phpBB 3.0, however, is a HUGE step up. It’s not as in depth as vBulletin, but it’s darn close. You can edit just about everything in the admin panel.

By reading the above comparison, you can probably tell by now that I am a bit biased towards vBulletin. And honestly, if any of you have tried the two, then you will know why. The only reason I would suggest phpBB over vBulletin is if you simply can’t afford vBulletin. It really is superior in every aspect.

Not only is vBulletin easier to use, but it also looks way better. The functionality is more user friendly, and in the long run it is more stable and secure. If you plan on running a large, profitable forum, you really need to make the decision to go for vBulletin. Of course if you can’t afford it now, you can also port you phpBB database to vBulletin later on. Don’t believe what you read about phpBB being a stepping stone to vBulletin. You can start right off with the best.