head to head · open source
Apache Superset vs Metabase
Apache Superset has 74,816 GitHub stars, 18,314 forks, 588 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Metabase has 49,312 stars, 6,824 forks, 4,346 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Apache Superset leads on adoption by 52% (74,816 vs 49,312 stars). Apache Superset is written in Python under Apache-2.0; Metabase is written in Clojure under a custom or non-standard licence. Apache Superset has attracted 24% as many forks as stars, Metabase 14%. Metabase was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 5 topic tags (analytics, bi, business-intelligence, data-analysis), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| Apache Superset | Metabase | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 75K | ★ 49K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Custom / other |
| Written in | Python | Clojure |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 18K | ⑂ 6.8K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Apache Superset if
- You weight community size — 75K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Metabase if
- You want the Metabase feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches Clojure
- You evaluated both and Metabase fits your workflow better
About Apache Superset
Apache Superset is an open source business intelligence platform that enables self serve data exploration and dashboard creation. It runs as a web application and provides tools for analysts and business users to visualize and analyze data without writing complex code, while also offering advanced capabilities for data engineers and developers. Superset lives in the Apache Software Foundation ecosystem and is licensed under Apache 2.0.
read the full Apache Superset overview →
About Metabase
Metabase is an open source business intelligence and embedded analytics tool, written in Clojure, that lets everyone in a company ask questions of their data and build dashboards without needing to know SQL.
read the full Metabase overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Apache Superset or Metabase more popular?
Apache Superset has 74,816 GitHub stars and Metabase has 49,312. Apache Superset has the larger community by that measure.
Are Apache Superset and Metabase free?
Both are open source. Apache Superset is licensed under Apache-2.0, and Metabase has no licence declared in this registry. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Apache Superset and Metabase?
Apache Superset is written in Python and Metabase in Clojure. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Apache Superset or Metabase?
Choose Apache Superset if you want the larger community (74,816 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose Metabase if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.