Differences between Communism and Socialism

Communism

Socialism

For many, recognizing the differences between communism and socialism can be a tricky subject. Some people say that communism is an extreme form of socialism. Others don’t really see a difference between both of them. The truth is that they are different philosophies that have some key points in common, such as the pursuit of equality. However, communism is a political structure that is not compatible with other political systems, while socialism is an economical structure that can actually work with different political points of view. Nowadays there are several countries that have a socialist dominance in their governments. Even those who prefer capitalism as the USA and the United Kingdom have governmental programs based on socialist principles.

	Socialism	Communism
Key figures	Robert Owen, Pierre Leroux, Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, John Stuart Mill, Albert Einstein, George Bernard Shaw, Thorstein Veblen, Emma Goldman.	Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Vladimir Lenin, Leon Trotsky.
Definition	Socialism is a social organization theory that stands for minimizing social differences. Socialism does not pursue equality per se; it just proposes that there are several basic rights that every person without exceptions should have.	Communism is a political structure that believes in the abolishment of all private property. It rejects free markets and capitalism in any of its forms. Within communism, the working class is owner of the means of production.
Principles	Industries are a collective effort. Any perceived profit is meant to benefit society (or at least the working class) as a whole. Each person contributes according to its abilities and in return to each person according to its contributions.	There is no reason for social classes to exist since everybody is the same. There is also no private property, the means of production are owned by the government. Wealth should be equally distributed among everyone.
Economic principles	According to socialism, the means of production should be owned by everybody. Economy should be managed by elected councils.	In communism there is an authoritarian party that controls every economic aspect of the nation. The State owns the means of production.
What kind of system is it?	Liberal. People’s voice is actually important and should be heard before making a decision.	Conservative. The decisions are in hand of a few (a single authoritarian party).
Ideology	Socialism believes every citizen must have access to basic services and basic products in order to help them grow. Big industries are usually a result of collective work. This is why every profit must be used in such way that it would benefit everyone.	Everybody is the same. There are no social distinctions. The government must be the owner of every mean of production. Everybody must work along with them and every profit that comes as a result of such work must be distributed equally among everybody.
Philosophy	Each gives according to its abilities ad for each according to its contributions. Profits must be equally divided among members of the society or at least among the working force. This would complement worker’s salaries.	Each gives according to its abilities and for each according to its needs. Free access to articles of first need is only possible through technology, which is also supposed to bring abundance for the population.
Distribution of wealth	Everything that is produced should be divided and distributed taking into account the productivity of each individual.	On the flipside wealth, produces and services in communism should be divided and shared between everybody.
Key points	Economical activities and production are adjusted by the State in order to satisfy both human needs and economical demands. It should only be produced because it is necessary. This means they will only produce what is necessary and useful. Same as for services.	Centralized government, planned economy, proletariat dictatorship, common ownership of the working tools. There is no such thing as private property. There’s also equality between men and women. It usually has an international focus, it tends to be antidemocratic and a one-party system.
Political system	Socialism can coexist with several other political systems. Many support the idea of having a participative democracy. Others, the socio-democrats believe in parliamentary democracies.	There is no such thing as a State in a communist society. Also, it is governed directly by the people. Of course, it is worth mentioning this is only a theory; it has never been tried.
About private property	EThere are two different kinds of properties. The first one is the personal, and it includes everything that belongs to every person. The second kind is the public property; including every big industry and means of production. They belonged to the State under its workers control.	It is abolished. This concept is not accepted and has been replaced by the concepts of common property and public property.
Political movements	Democratic socialism, communism, social-anarchism.	Leninism, Trotskyism, Marxism-Leninism, Maoism, Left-communism, and Stalinism.