Best Self Hosted Alternatives to Heimdall (hosted offerings)

Homer is a lightweight, static dashboard (startpage) that lets you organize and present links to your self-hosted services and other resources in a clean, responsive UI. It is configured primarily via a single YAML file and can be served from any simple web server or container.

Key Features

• YAML-based configuration for groups, items, icons, and layout
• Responsive UI with theming and customization (colors, background, logo, etc.)
• Built-in search/filtering to quickly find services
• Optional service “health checks”/status indicators for configured URLs
• Support for custom links, categories/groups, and per-item metadata
• Runs as a static site (no server-side database required)

Use Cases

• Personal homelab startpage to centralize links to apps (media, storage, admin tools)
• Team/internal portal listing environments, dashboards, and operational tools
• Simple landing page on a reverse proxy to help users discover available services

Limitations and Considerations

• Configuration is file-based; there is no built-in web UI for editing content
• Feature set is intentionally minimal compared to heavier dashboards (e.g., no user accounts/RBAC)

Homer is best suited for users who want a fast, low-maintenance startpage that is easy to version-control and deploy anywhere. If you prefer “configure by file” over “configure in a UI,” it provides a clean way to keep all your service entry points in one place.

Homarr is a self-hosted homepage/startpage that lets you build a clean dashboard for all of your apps, bookmarks, and widgets in one place. It focuses on a drag-and-drop layout editor, theming, and ready-made integrations commonly used in homelabs.

Key Features

• Drag-and-drop dashboard editor with responsive grid layout
• App tiles for quick access to services and external links
• Widget system to surface live data from integrations (service status and common homelab apps)
• Multiple pages/sections for organizing apps by category (e.g., media, infrastructure, admin)
• Customization options such as themes, icons, and background styling
• Docker-friendly deployment and configuration aimed at homelab environments

Use Cases

• Create a single landing page to launch and organize all homelab apps
• Display at-a-glance widgets for media servers, downloaders, and monitoring tools
• Provide a shared “family dashboard” for commonly used household services

Homarr is well-suited for users who want a visually polished, centrally managed startpage with integrations typical of self-hosted stacks. It provides a practical way to keep links and service context together, reducing the need to jump between multiple UIs for basic status and navigation.