Self-Hosted Social Media Platform

Cuiter - Social Network Platform

A fully-featured, self-hosted social media platform built with PHP & MySQL. Launch your own community with posts, real-time feeds, communities, monetization, ads, premium badges, and a powerful admin panel — all installable in minutes.

Live Demo Report a Bug

PHP 8.0+ MySQL PWA Ready 6 Languages Dark & Light Mode Google Login Stripe · PayPal · Xendit · PayTR Admin Panel

50+ API Endpoints

13 Onboarding Steps

6 Languages

4 Payment Gateways

PHP Framework Cuiter – Social Network Platform built for real connections, meaningful conversations, and endless inspiration.

PHP Social Network Script & Platform Ready to Use!

100% built with Native PHP framework.

Description Social Network Platform designed to connect people, inspire ideas, and share life’s moments together.

Cuiter - Social Network Platform is a fully-featured, production-ready social media platform built with PHP and MySQL. Inspired by modern social networks, it gives you everything you need to launch your own community — out of the box, with no coding required.

Users can create richly formatted posts with images, videos, GIFs, polls, and location tags. The follow-based timeline supports trending hashtags and an explore section that helps users discover new content. Direct messaging, communities, bookmarks, user lists, and @mentions make it a complete social experience for any niche.

Monetization is built in at every level. Creators earn from ad revenue, tips, subscriptions, and platform bonuses. Site owners benefit from a premium badge system, a self-serve advertising marketplace, and configurable payment gateways — Stripe, PayPal, Xendit, and PayTR. The admin panel gives you granular control over users, content, payments, SEO, and platform settings.

Built with Progressive Web App (PWA) support, dark/light theme toggle, multi-language (EN, ID, TR, RU, IN, UK), fully responsive mobile design, and a clean 3-step installation wizard — Cuiter is ready to deploy on any standard PHP/MySQL web host immediately after purchase.

User Features Complete feature list available to registered members

Authentication & Registration

13-Step Registration Wizard Guided onboarding: email, verify, name, DOB, gender, city, country, username, bio, avatar, follow suggestions, password.

Google OAuth2 Login One-click sign-in and registration via Google account with automatic profile setup.

Email Verification Secure OTP-based email verification during registration with resend support via PHPMailer.

Forgot & Reset Password Secure password recovery flow via email link with time-limited reset token.

Feed & Posts

Personalized Home Timeline Follow-based feed showing posts from users and communities the member follows.

Rich Media Posts Attach images, videos (FFmpeg compressed), animated GIFs via Giphy API, and link previews.

Polls Create polls with multiple options and configurable duration (days, hours, minutes).

Post Scheduling Schedule posts to be published automatically at a future date and time.

Location Tagging Add a geographic location tag to any post for geo-contextual content.

Quote Post & Repost Repost content or add commentary via quote-repost with embedded preview card.

Reply Permissions Control who can reply: Everyone, Following only, Verified only, or Mentioned only.

Edit & Delete Posts Edit published posts or permanently delete them at any time.

Draft Posts Save unfinished posts as drafts and continue writing them later before publishing.

Hashtags Clickable hashtags with dedicated hashtag pages showing all related posts.

@Mentions Mention users with @ in posts, comments, and messages. Triggers in-app and email notifications.

Emoji Picker Built-in emoji picker for inserting emojis into posts and comments with ease.

Social Interactions

Like & Comment Like posts and write threaded comments with real-time counter updates.

Follow / Unfollow Follow users to add their content to your feed. Supports private account follow requests.

Block Users Block any user to prevent them from seeing your profile or interacting with you.

Mute Users Mute users to hide their posts from your feed without unfollowing them.

Report Content Report posts for Spam, Hate Speech, Misinformation, Violence, or Sexual Content.

Bookmarks Save any post to a private bookmarks collection for easy later access.

User Lists Create curated lists of users and view a dedicated feed from that list only.

Community Notes Community-sourced fact-checking notes on posts, visible after admin approval.

Not Interested Hide posts from the feed without muting or blocking the author permanently.

Profile & Identity

Public Profile Page Customizable profile with avatar, cover photo, bio, website, location, and join date.

Verification Badges 4 badge types: Verified (blue), Premium (gold), Creator (green), Official (red).

Followers & Following Lists Browse and manage followers and following with search and remove controls.

About Page Extended about section with full bio, details, and public profile statistics.

Messaging & Notifications

Direct Messages (DM) Private one-on-one messaging with support for text, images, and video attachments.

In-App Notifications Notifications for likes, comments, follows, reposts, mentions, messages, badges, and system alerts.

Email Notifications Optional email alerts for all notification types via beautifully designed HTML email templates.

Discovery & Search

Trending Hashtags Explore page showing trending topics ranked by recent activity across the platform.

Search & Advanced Search Search users, posts, hashtags. Advanced search filters by user, date range, and media type.

People You May Know Smart follow suggestions based on mutual connections and shared interests.

Communities Join or create topic-based communities with their own feed, members list, and moderation.

Premium & Creator Monetization

Premium Subscription Monthly and yearly premium plans with exclusive perks and platform-wide benefits.

Purchase Verification Badges Buy Verified, Creator, or Official badges through integrated payment gateways.

Creator Monetization Program Apply for monetization and earn from ad revenue, user tips, subscriptions, and bonuses.

Earnings Dashboard & Withdrawals View earnings breakdown and request withdrawals to a bank account or PayPal.

Self-Serve Advertising Create ads (Banner, Sidebar, Featured, Sponsored) with custom images, HTML, or AdSense code.

Settings & Personalization

Account Settings Change email, username, password, and profile details from a central settings page.

Dark & Light Theme Toggle between dark and light mode. Preference is persisted across sessions.

Multi-Language Interface Switch UI language: English, Indonesian, Turkish, Russian, Hindi, or Ukrainian.

Privacy Controls Set account to private, manage blocked/muted lists, and notification preferences.

Deactivate or Delete Account Temporarily deactivate or permanently delete account along with all associated data.

PWA & Install Prompt Add to home screen on mobile via Progressive Web App for a native app-like experience.

Admin Features Full control panel for site owners and administrators

Dashboard & Analytics

Platform Statistics At-a-glance counters: total users, posts, reports, badge buyers, ad revenue, monetization, and new registrations.

Real-Time Activity Overview Monitor new signups, trending posts, and recent platform activity from the admin home dashboard.

User Management

Full User CRUD Create, read, update, and delete any user account. Edit roles, status, and profile info.

Ban & Suspend Users Temporarily suspend or permanently ban users from the platform with reason logging.

Assign & Revoke Badges Manually grant or revoke Verified, Premium, Creator, and Official badges for any user.

Impersonate Users Log in as any user to inspect their experience and debug issues without needing their password.

Content Moderation

Reports Queue Review all reported posts with context, reporter info, and one-click approve / reject / delete actions.

Community Notes Review Approve or reject community-submitted fact-check notes before they appear publicly on posts.

Delete Any Post or Comment Directly remove any post or comment from the platform without restrictions.

Trend Reports Review hashtags reported as inappropriate and remove them from the trending section.

Ads & Creator Monetization

Ad Approval & Management Review, approve, reject, and manage all user-submitted ad campaigns before they go live.

Ad Analytics View impressions, clicks, CTR, and revenue breakdown for all active ad campaigns.

Monetization Applications Approve or reject creator monetization applications and manage payout settings.

Withdrawal Processing Review and process creator withdrawal requests to Bank or PayPal — mark paid or reject with notes.

Payment & Premium

Multi-Gateway Payment Config Configure Stripe, PayPal, Xendit, and PayTR with API keys from the admin panel. Toggle each on or off.

Premium Plans Management Create and configure monthly and yearly premium subscription pricing and access levels.

Badge Pricing & Orders Set pricing per badge type and manage all badge purchase orders with approval/reject controls.

Site Settings & Configuration

Branding & Theme Set site name, upload dark/light logos and favicon, and choose a primary brand color via color picker.

SEO Settings Configure meta title, meta description, Open Graph image, robots.txt, and Google Analytics ID.

SMTP Email Configuration Set SMTP host, port, username, password, and sender name for all outgoing notification emails.

Video & Media Settings Configure FFmpeg binary path, maximum upload size, and video compression quality.

Static Pages Manager Create and edit pages: About, Privacy Policy, Terms of Service, Cookies, Help Center, API, Contact.

Google Login Config Enable/disable Google OAuth and configure Client ID and Client Secret from the admin panel.

Requirements Server and environment prerequisites before installation

Component	Minimum Requirement	Notes	Status
PHP Version	8.0+	PHP 8.1 / 8.2 recommended for best performance and compatibility	Required
MySQL / MariaDB	MySQL 5.7+ / MariaDB 10.3+	Must support `utf8mb4` charset and InnoDB storage engine	Required
PHP: MySQLi Extension	Enabled	Used for all database queries throughout the application	Required
PHP: GD Extension	Enabled	Used for image resizing, compression, and thumbnail generation	Required
PHP: cURL Extension	Enabled	Used for Google OAuth, link previews, and payment gateway API calls	Required
PHP: OpenSSL Extension	Enabled	Required for SMTP TLS/SSL email sending via PHPMailer	Required
PHP: MBString Extension	Enabled	Required for multi-language Unicode text handling	Required
PHP: JSON Extension	Enabled	Used by all API endpoints for request and response handling	Required
PHP: FileInfo Extension	Enabled	Used to validate uploaded file MIME types securely	Required
Web Server	Apache 2.4+ or Nginx	Apache with `mod_rewrite` required for `.htaccess` URL routing	Required
URL Rewriting	mod_rewrite enabled	Required for clean SEO-friendly URLs like `/username`, `/explore`, etc.	Required
HTTPS / SSL Certificate	Valid SSL on domain	Mandatory for Google OAuth and PWA. Free Let's Encrypt SSL is sufficient.	Required
Folder Write Permission	755 on key dirs	`uploads/`, `config/`, `assets/`, `install/` must be writable	Required
PHP: max_execution_time	120 seconds+	Needed for video upload and FFmpeg processing jobs	Recommended
PHP: upload_max_filesize	64M minimum	Increase to 256M or higher for large video uploads	Recommended
PHP: post_max_size	64M minimum	Must be equal to or greater than `upload_max_filesize`	Recommended
PHP: memory_limit	256M	Required for image processing and complex API responses	Recommended
FFmpeg	Installed on server	Required for server-side video compression and thumbnail generation	Recommended
SMTP Email Service	Any SMTP provider	Gmail, Mailgun, SendGrid, Brevo, Amazon SES, or any standard SMTP	Recommended
Google OAuth Credentials	Google Cloud Console	Required only if Google Login feature will be enabled for users	Optional
Stripe API Keys	stripe.com dashboard	Required for Stripe-powered payments (badges, premium, ads)	Optional
PayPal API Credentials	developer.paypal.com	Required for PayPal payments and creator withdrawals	Optional
Xendit API Key	xendit.co dashboard	Required for Xendit gateway — popular in Southeast Asia	Optional
PayTR API Key	paytr.com dashboard	Required for PayTR gateway — popular in Turkey	Optional
Giphy API Key	developers.giphy.com	Required to enable GIF search in the post composer	Optional

Installation Instructions Step-by-step guide from download to live site

1

Verify Server Requirements
Before uploading any files, confirm your hosting meets all requirements: PHP 8.0+, MySQL 5.7+, and all required PHP extensions enabled (MySQLi, GD, cURL, OpenSSL, MBString, JSON, FileInfo). Contact your hosting provider if unsure — most shared hosts (cPanel/Plesk) meet these requirements by default.
2

Create a MySQL Database
In your hosting control panel (cPanel, Plesk, or phpMyAdmin), create a new MySQL database and a dedicated database user. Assign the user full privileges (ALL PRIVILEGES) on the new database. Note the database name, username, password, and host (usually localhost).
3

Upload Files to Your Server
Extract the downloaded ZIP package on your computer. Upload all extracted files to your server's public root directory (public_html/, www/, or your subdomain/subfolder) using FTP (FileZilla) or your hosting file manager. Upload all files including hidden files and the install/ folder.
4

Set Folder Permissions
Set the following directories to writable permission 755 (or 775 if required by your host):
uploads/ config/ assets/ install/
This allows the installer to write the database config and the app to save user-uploaded files.
5

Enable .htaccess (Apache Only)
In the root folder, locate the file named rename-htaccess and rename it to .htaccess. This enables mod_rewrite for clean SEO-friendly URL routing. For Nginx servers, apply the equivalent rewrite rules in your server block configuration file instead.
6

Run the Installation Wizard
Open your browser and go to https://yourdomain.com/install. The 3-step wizard will guide you through:
Step 1 — Database connection and automatic schema import
Step 2 — Buyer / license configuration (email, username, domain)
Step 3 — Admin account creation (name, email, username, password)
7

Log In to the Admin Panel
After installation completes, go to https://yourdomain.com/admin and log in with the admin credentials you created in Step 3. The installer is automatically locked and renamed after completion to prevent re-access.
8

Configure Site Branding
In the admin panel, go to Settings and customize your site name, upload logo files (dark and light variants), upload your favicon, and select your primary brand color using the built-in color picker.
9

Configure SMTP Email
Go to Admin → Settings → Email and enter your SMTP credentials (host, port, username, password, sender name). Send a test email to verify. Supported: Gmail SMTP, Mailgun, SendGrid, Brevo, Amazon SES, or any standard SMTP service.
10

Set Up Payment Gateways (Optional)
Go to Admin → Payment and enter API keys for the gateways you want to activate. Each can be enabled or disabled independently: Stripe, PayPal, Xendit, PayTR. Unused gateways can be left blank.
11

Enable Google Login (Optional)
Go to Admin → Google Login. Create OAuth2 credentials at Google Cloud Console, add your domain as an authorized redirect URI (https://yourdomain.com/auth/google-callback), then paste the Client ID and Client Secret in the admin panel and toggle the feature on.
12

Configure Video & FFmpeg (Optional)
If your server has FFmpeg installed, go to Admin → Video Settings and enter the full path to the FFmpeg binary (e.g. /usr/bin/ffmpeg). Set maximum video upload size and compression quality. Without FFmpeg, videos are stored in their original format.
13

Configure SEO Settings
Go to Admin → SEO to set site meta title, meta description, default Open Graph image, and paste your Google Analytics measurement ID. Configure robots.txt indexing rules as needed for your deployment.
14

Go Live!
Your Cuiter - Social Network Platform is fully configured and ready for users. Share your domain, start posting, and invite your community. For ongoing support, refer to the included documentation or contact the author directly.

Security Notice: After installation, the installer is automatically locked and install/index.php is renamed to prevent re-access. Never share your config/database.php file publicly. Always keep PHP and MySQL updated to the latest stable versions on your server.

Note: The username admin is reserved and cannot be used for the admin account, as it would conflict with the admin panel URL at yourdomain.com/admin. Use your own name or a unique combination during setup.