Why build your own RSS backend?

You get:

• Your feeds sync across all your devices through SmartRSS
• Your reading habits stay on your own server
• No monthly fees beyond the VPS
• No limit on the number of subscriptions
• It’s fast, since it runs on your own infrastructure

What you’ll need

• A VPS (Virtual Private Server) - $5-10/month
• About 30 minutes of your time
• No coding experience required!

Quick start: try official instances first

Before setting up your own server, you can try these official demo instances:

Official FreshRSS demo

https://demo.freshrss.org/

Clean interface, mobile-friendly, good API support. Good for beginners who want a traditional RSS experience.

Official Miniflux demo

https://miniflux.app/ (offers a free trial)

Modern design, excellent keyboard shortcuts, and a powerful API. Good for power users who want speed and efficiency.

Both demos let you test the services before deciding which one to self-host. Both work with SmartRSS.

Step 1: Get your VPS ready

Choosing and purchasing a VPS

RSS hosting doesn’t need much. What I recommend:

• Minimum: 1GB RAM, 1 CPU core, 20GB storage
• Comfortable: 2GB RAM, 1 CPU core, 40GB storage
• Cost: $5-10/month

Easy providers for beginners:

• DigitalOcean: most beginner-friendly, good tutorials
• Linode: excellent performance, good support
• Vultr: simple interface, reliable service

Deploy your server

1. Create an account at your chosen provider
2. Click “Create Droplet/Server”
3. Choose Ubuntu 22.04 LTS
4. Pick the $5-10/month plan
5. Click “Create” and wait 2-3 minutes
6. You’ll get an email with your server IP and password!

Step 2: Connect to your server

Open your terminal (or PowerShell on Windows) and connect:

ssh root@your_server_ip

The first time, you’ll be asked “Are you sure you want to continue connecting?” Type yes and press Enter.

Then paste the password from your VPS provider’s email. It won’t show on screen as you type, that’s normal.

Step 3: Install Docker

Just copy and paste this single command:

curl -fsSL https://get.docker.com | sh

This installs Docker and everything it needs. Grab a coffee, it takes 2-3 minutes.

Test the installation

docker run hello-world

If you see “Hello from Docker!”, you’re ready.

Step 4: Choose your RSS services

You’ll pick one main reader. RSSHub and RSS-Bridge are optional extras for generating feeds from sites that don’t have their own:

The main RSS reader (pick one)

You need one main RSS reader to manage your feeds:

FreshRSS: the beginner-friendly choice

FreshRSS suits first-time self-hosters, or anyone who wants a traditional, familiar interface and simplicity over advanced features.

• Clean, intuitive web interface
• Easy mobile app integration
• Good API support for SmartRSS
• Simple setup and maintenance
• Large community and documentation

It uses about 100MB of RAM.

Miniflux: the power user’s choice

Miniflux suits experienced users who want maximum speed, keyboard shortcuts, minimal distraction-free reading, and a modern tech stack.

• Very fast
• Excellent keyboard navigation
• Powerful filtering and search
• Modern, responsive design
• Built-in feed fetching optimization

It uses about 150MB of RAM including PostgreSQL.

Can’t decide? Start with FreshRSS. It’s easier for beginners, and you can switch later.

Optional: RSSHub

Many modern websites (YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, Telegram, etc.) don’t provide RSS feeds anymore. RSSHub generates feeds for them.

Why you might want it:

1. Feeds from 400+ platforms
2. Social media feeds: YouTube channels, Twitter users, Instagram posts
3. Custom feeds from specific websites, filters, or keywords
4. Control over feed content, update frequency, and format
5. Free and open, no API keys needed

Some examples:

• Get RSS feeds from your favorite YouTube channels
• Follow Twitter users without using Twitter
• Track Instagram posts from specific accounts
• Monitor Telegram channels
• Create feeds from websites that don’t have RSS
• And hundreds more

It uses about 200MB of RAM with Redis.

My recommendation: start without RSSHub. Add it later if you need feeds from social media or non-RSS sites.

Optional: RSS-Bridge

RSS-Bridge does the same job as RSSHub: it generates RSS and Atom feeds for websites that don’t provide their own. It runs as a single PHP container, no database or cache needed. You control which bridges are enabled with a whitelist file.

My recommendation: same as RSSHub. Install it only if you need feeds from sites without RSS.

Step 5: Set up your service

Create the project directory

mkdir -p ~/rss-services
cd ~/rss-services

Option A: FreshRSS (recommended for beginners)

mkdir freshrss && cd freshrss
nano docker-compose.yml

version: "3.8"

services:
  freshrss:
    image: freshrss/freshrss:latest
    container_name: freshrss
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "8080:80"
    volumes:
      - ./freshrss-data:/var/www/FreshRSS/data
      - ./freshrss-extensions:/var/www/FreshRSS/extensions
    environment:
      - CRON_MIN=*/10
      - TZ=Asia/Shanghai

Change TZ to your timezone. Save and exit with Ctrl+X, then Y, then Enter.

Option B: Miniflux (for power users)

cd ~/rss-services
mkdir miniflux && cd miniflux
nano docker-compose.yml

Copy and paste this configuration:

version: "3.8"

services:
  miniflux:
    image: miniflux/miniflux:latest
    container_name: miniflux
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "8081:8080"
    environment:
      - DATABASE_URL=postgres://miniflux:secret@miniflux-db/miniflux?sslmode=disable
      - RUN_MIGRATIONS=1
      - CREATE_ADMIN=1
      - ADMIN_USERNAME=admin
      - ADMIN_PASSWORD=changeme
      - BASE_URL=http://your_server_ip:8081
      - CLEANUP_FREQUENCY=24
      - POLLING_FREQUENCY=60
      - TZ=Asia/Shanghai
    depends_on:
      - miniflux-db

  miniflux-db:
    image: postgres:15
    container_name: miniflux-db
    restart: unless-stopped
    environment:
      - POSTGRES_USER=miniflux
      - POSTGRES_PASSWORD=secret
      - POSTGRES_DB=miniflux
    volumes:
      - miniflux-db:/var/lib/postgresql/data
    healthcheck:
      test: ["CMD-SHELL", "pg_isready -U miniflux"]
      interval: 10s
      timeout: 5s
      retries: 5

volumes:
  miniflux-db:

Change these to your own values:

• ADMIN_USERNAME: your username
• ADMIN_PASSWORD: a strong password
• BASE_URL: your server IP
• TZ: your timezone

Save and exit with Ctrl+X, then Y, then Enter.

Option C: RSSHub (optional)

Only install RSSHub if you need feeds from social media or non-RSS sites.

cd ~/rss-services
mkdir rsshub && cd rsshub
nano docker-compose.yml

Copy and paste this configuration:

version: "3.8"

services:
  rsshub:
    image: diygod/rsshub:latest
    container_name: rsshub
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "1200:1200"
    environment:
      NODE_ENV: production
      CACHE_TYPE: redis
      REDIS_URL: redis://rsshub-redis:6379/
    depends_on:
      - rsshub-redis

  rsshub-redis:
    image: redis:alpine
    container_name: rsshub-redis
    restart: unless-stopped
    volumes:
      - rsshub-redis-data:/data
    command: redis-server --appendonly yes

volumes:
  rsshub-redis-data:

Save and exit with Ctrl+X, then Y, then Enter.

Option D: RSS-Bridge (optional)

RSS-Bridge turns websites without RSS into feeds, same idea as RSSHub. Install it only if you need that.

cd ~/rss-services
mkdir rss-bridge && cd rss-bridge
nano docker-compose.yml

Copy and paste this configuration:

services:
  rss-bridge:
    image: rssbridge/rss-bridge:latest
    container_name: rss-bridge
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "3000:80"
    volumes:
      - ./whitelist.txt:/app/whitelist.txt:ro
    environment:
      - RSSBRIDGE_whitelist_file=/app/whitelist.txt

Save and exit with Ctrl+X, then Y, then Enter.

Next, create the whitelist file. It decides which bridges are enabled. * enables all of them:

echo '*' > whitelist.txt
cat whitelist.txt
# *

If you want to limit the bridges, put bridge names in this file instead, one per line.

Step 6: Launch your services

Navigate to your chosen service directory and start it:

For FreshRSS:

cd ~/rss-services/freshrss
docker compose up -d

For Miniflux:

cd ~/rss-services/miniflux
docker compose up -d

For RSSHub (if installed):

cd ~/rss-services/rsshub
docker compose up -d

For RSS-Bridge (if installed):

cd ~/rss-services/rss-bridge
docker compose up -d

This will download and start your services. Wait 2-3 minutes for everything to initialize.

Check if everything is running

# For FreshRSS
cd ~/rss-services/freshrss && docker compose ps

# For Miniflux
cd ~/rss-services/miniflux && docker compose ps

# For RSSHub
cd ~/rss-services/rsshub && docker compose ps

# For RSS-Bridge
cd ~/rss-services/rss-bridge && docker compose ps

If a service shows “Up”, it’s working.

Step 7: Access and configure your services

FreshRSS setup

• URL: http://your_server_ip:8080
• First time: click “Installation” and create your admin account
• Good for: beginners who want a simple, clean interface

Miniflux setup

• URL: http://your_server_ip:8081
• Login: use the username and password you set in the config file
• Good for: users who want speed and powerful features

RSSHub (no setup needed)

• URL: http://your_server_ip:1200
• No login required, it just works
• Use it to generate RSS feeds from YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, etc.
• Documentation: open the URL to see all available routes and examples

RSS-Bridge (no setup needed)

• URL: http://your_server_ip:3000
• No login required
• Use it to generate feeds for sites without RSS
• Open the URL to browse the available bridges

Step 8: Enable API access for SmartRSS

Now connect your RSS services to SmartRSS.

Enable FreshRSS API

1. Log in to FreshRSS at http://your_server_ip:8080.
2. Click your username (top right), then Administration.
3. Go to Authentication and enable API access.
4. Save the changes.
5. Generate API credentials:
   • Still in Administration, open Profile
   • Scroll to the API section
   • Click Generate to create your API password
   • Copy your API username and password. SmartRSS will need them.

Enable Miniflux API

1. Log in to Miniflux at http://your_server_ip:8081.
2. Open Settings, then Integrations.
3. Enable the Google Reader API and set a username and password. These are separate from your Miniflux account login.
4. Server URL: http://your_server_ip:8081/

Step 9: Connect SmartRSS to your server

Now connect SmartRSS to your self-hosted services.

For FreshRSS users:

1. Open SmartRSS on your device.
2. Add a new account and select FreshRSS.
3. Enter your server details:
   • Server URL: http://your_server_ip:8080/api/
   • Username: your FreshRSS username
   • Password: your API password (from step 8)
4. Test the connection. Your feeds now sync.

For Miniflux users:

1. Open SmartRSS on your device.
2. Add a new account and select Miniflux.
3. Enter your server details:
   • Server URL: http://your_server_ip:8081/
   • Username: your Miniflux Google Reader username
   • Password: your Miniflux Google Reader password
4. Test the connection, and you’re done.

Add feeds from RSSHub

Want to follow a YouTube channel or Twitter user that doesn’t have RSS?

1. Open RSSHub at http://your_server_ip:1200.
2. Find the route you need, for example /youtube/user/:username.
3. Copy the RSS feed URL.
4. Add it in SmartRSS, or in your FreshRSS or Miniflux web interface.

Popular RSSHub routes:

• YouTube: http://your_server_ip:1200/youtube/user/:username
• Twitter: http://your_server_ip:1200/twitter/user/:username
• Instagram: http://your_server_ip:1200/instagram/user/:username
• Telegram: http://your_server_ip:1200/telegram/channel/:channelname

Add feeds from RSS-Bridge

1. Open RSS-Bridge at http://your_server_ip:3000.
2. Pick a bridge from the list and fill in the fields it asks for.
3. Copy the RSS or Atom URL it generates.
4. Add that URL in SmartRSS, or in your FreshRSS or Miniflux web interface.

Quick management commands

Check service status

# For FreshRSS
cd ~/rss-services/freshrss && docker compose ps

# For Miniflux
cd ~/rss-services/miniflux && docker compose ps

# For RSSHub
cd ~/rss-services/rsshub && docker compose ps

# For RSS-Bridge
cd ~/rss-services/rss-bridge && docker compose ps

View logs (if something goes wrong)

# For FreshRSS
cd ~/rss-services/freshrss && docker compose logs -f

# For Miniflux
cd ~/rss-services/miniflux && docker compose logs -f

# For RSSHub
cd ~/rss-services/rsshub && docker compose logs -f

# For RSS-Bridge
cd ~/rss-services/rss-bridge && docker compose logs -f

Restart a service

# For FreshRSS
cd ~/rss-services/freshrss && docker compose restart

# For Miniflux
cd ~/rss-services/miniflux && docker compose restart

# For RSSHub
cd ~/rss-services/rsshub && docker compose restart

# For RSS-Bridge
cd ~/rss-services/rss-bridge && docker compose restart

Update your services

# For FreshRSS
cd ~/rss-services/freshrss && docker compose pull && docker compose up -d

# For Miniflux
cd ~/rss-services/miniflux && docker compose pull && docker compose up -d

# For RSSHub
cd ~/rss-services/rsshub && docker compose pull && docker compose up -d

# For RSS-Bridge
cd ~/rss-services/rss-bridge && docker compose pull && docker compose up -d

Stop services

# For FreshRSS
cd ~/rss-services/freshrss && docker compose down

# For Miniflux
cd ~/rss-services/miniflux && docker compose down

# For RSSHub
cd ~/rss-services/rsshub && docker compose down

# For RSS-Bridge
cd ~/rss-services/rss-bridge && docker compose down

Common issues and fixes

Services won’t start

# Check what's wrong (replace with your service)
cd ~/rss-services/freshrss  # or miniflux, rsshub, or rss-bridge
docker compose logs

# Restart everything
docker compose restart

Can’t access your server

Make sure your VPS provider’s firewall allows these ports (only for services you installed):

• 8080 (FreshRSS)
• 8081 (Miniflux)
• 1200 (RSSHub)
• 3000 (RSS-Bridge)

SmartRSS won’t connect

1. Double-check your server URL, including http:// and the port number.
2. Verify your API credentials. Regenerate them if needed.
3. Test the web interface in your browser first. If you can log in there, the server itself is fine.

Conclusion

You now have your own RSS backend that syncs with SmartRSS across all your devices. Your reading stays on your own server, and there are no monthly fees.

Start adding your favorite feeds.

Need help? Check the official documentation:

• FreshRSS Documentation
• Miniflux Documentation
• RSSHub Documentation
• RSS-Bridge Documentation

Happy reading!

Download SmartRSS and connect it to your new backend.

If you’ve ever wished your RSS reader could do a bit more, like summarizing, translating, or helping you learn English, this post is for you.

SmartRSS now works with AI prompts, so you can analyze, learn from, and share articles. Here are some prompts you can use right away.

1. Article Analyzer

Get a structured summary, key insights, and a timeline.

Based on the following requirements, please analyze the article and produce the output that includes a concise summary, key takeaways, and additional contextual insights. The output language should be {language}. Use clear, accessible, and natural phrasing suitable for general readers.
      
1. Provide a 50 words long concise and engaging summary that captures the article’s core viewpoints and main idea.
2. List the most important insights or facts using clear and easy-to-understand language.
3. If the article contains chronological information or significant events, include a short timeline summarizing the key moments in order.
4. Give a brief background to help readers understand the article’s context — such as why the topic matters or what situation it addresses.

Article Title: {title}
Article Content: {content}

Please provide the content directly, without any additional explanatory text.

Perfect for understanding long reads at a glance.

2. Translation Assistant

Read anything, in any language.

Please translate the following article into {language}.
Keep the paragraph structure and tone consistent with the original text.
Do not add explanations or summaries.

Title: {title}
Content: {content}

Great for following Japanese tech blogs or French design magazines.

3. Keyword Extractor

See what the article is really about.

Please extract the 10 most relevant keywords or phrases from this article.
Focus on concepts that capture the main ideas and subjects.
Return the keywords in {language}.

Title: {title}
Content: {content}

Useful for tagging, search optimization, or topic discovery.

4. English Learning Assistant

Turn every article into a mini English lesson.

Please identify difficult words or idioms in the following article.
For each, provide a list:
- {language} Definition
- Example sentence
- Simple synonym

Title: {title}
Content: {content}

Perfect for readers learning English through real content.

5. Discussion Starter

Generate questions that make you think.

Read the following article and create 3 open-ended discussion questions.
Each question should encourage deeper thinking or debate.
Write the output in {language}.

Title: {title}
Content: {content}

Ideal for study groups or newsletter editors looking for talking points.

6. Social Media Repost Generator

Share your favorite reads instantly.

Please create a short social media post based on the following article.
Make it catchy, under 280 characters, and include 2-3 relevant hashtags.
Keep the tone engaging and informative.
Write the post in {language}.

Title: {title}
Content: {content}

From SmartRSS to your social feed in one click.

7. Hashtag & Topic Generator

Find hashtags that make your post discoverable.

Please generate 5-8 relevant hashtags that best match the themes and topics of this article.
Focus on concise, popular, and meaningful tags.
Return the hashtags in {language}.

Title: {title}
Content: {content}

Pair it with the Social Media Repost prompt for best results.

8. Headline Rewriter

Craft catchy titles that grab attention.

Please generate 5 alternative headlines for this article.
Each headline should be under 15 words and written in an engaging tone suitable for online audiences.
Write the headlines in {language}.

Title: {title}
Content: {content}

Try this when you’re curating articles or writing newsletters.

9. Fact Checker & Bias Detector

Read with a critical eye.

Please analyze the following article for factual reliability and potential bias.
Identify any emotionally charged or opinionated language.
Summarize your findings objectively in bullet points.
Use {language} for the output.

Title: {title}
Content: {content}

Helps you spot bias and misinformation at a glance.

10. Writing Style Mimic

Learn from your favorite writers’ styles.

Analyze the writing style of this article, including tone, rhythm, and vocabulary.
Then, generate a short paragraph (around 100 words) written in a similar style on a related topic.
Use {language} for the output.

Title: {title}
Content: {content}

Perfect for bloggers and content creators seeking inspiration.

Bonus tip: combine prompts

You can chain them together:

• Keyword Extractor → Hashtag Generator → Social Media Post
• Article Analyzer → Discussion Starter → English Learning Assistant

Final thoughts

With AI prompts, SmartRSS does more than show you feeds. It can summarize, teach, and help you share what you read.

Try these prompts, tweak them to fit your reading habits, and see what your feed can do.

Happy reading.

Download SmartRSS and try these prompts.

What makes SmartRSS special?

SmartRSS is an RSS reader that works the same way everywhere. Open the same feeds from any device, Android, iOS, macOS, or Windows, in one interface.

AI features that work for you

You write your own prompts for AI actions and connect them to OpenAI, Anthropic, or Google Cloud AI. Once a prompt is set, run it on any article: summarize it, translate it, pull out key phrases, analyze sentiment, or turn unstructured text into structured data.

AI Aggregation groups up to 100 articles by topic, narrative, or underlying connection. Instead of a long unread list, you get organized summaries. Saving something? Share it as clean markdown to your note-taking or read-later app in one tap.

Universal sync & integration

Never lose an update. SmartRSS syncs multiple accounts with almost any backend service, including:

• Self-hosted: FreshRSS, Miniflux
• Cloud services: Feedly, Feedbin, Newsblur, Bazqux, Inoreader (Developer API)
• Legacy API: Google Reader API compatibility

Multi-platform content support

SmartRSS supports many content platforms:

• Traditional blogs and websites: classic RSS feeds
• Medium publications: follow your favorite writers
• Mastodon profiles: stay connected with the decentralized social web
• Bluesky profiles: keep up with the newest social platform
• Substack newsletters: never miss important newsletters
• YouTube channels: get notified of new videos
• Reddit communities: track discussions that matter to you

Paste a URL and SmartRSS finds the correct feed. Follow creators across platforms without hunting for RSS links. Everything lives in one place, sorted into custom categories.

Personalized experience

Theming options:

• Over 1000 fonts
• 12 dynamic color themes
• Adaptive color schemes: Tonal Spot, Fidelity, Neutral, Vibrant, and Expressive
• The interface adapts to your preferences for readability

Reading experience

Reading is clean and distraction-free:

• Clean article layout, no distractions
• Smart content parsing: articles keep their images and multimedia formatting
• Quick actions for sharing, bookmarking, and navigation
• Responsive design for different screen sizes

VoiceOver and TalkBack are fully supported, and Bionic Reading helps guide your eyes through text.

Audio experience

Turn reading into listening. SmartRSS has a built-in audio player:

• Custom TTS (text-to-speech): pick from multiple voices and engines, with control over speed, pitch, and language.
• Native podcast support: subscribe, manage, and play episodes in the app, with automatic fetching and background playback.
• Universal play queue: mix TTS articles and podcast episodes into one continuous list.

SmartRSS is available now on the App Store and Google Play. Have feedback or questions? Feel free to reach out. I’d love to hear from you!