head to head · open source
AppSmith vs Budibase
AppSmith has 41,153 GitHub stars, 4,824 forks, 4,467 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Budibase has 28,376 stars, 2,236 forks, 276 open issues and last shipped yesterday. AppSmith leads on adoption by 45% (41,153 vs 28,376 stars). AppSmith is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0; Budibase is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence. AppSmith has attracted 12% as many forks as stars, Budibase 8%. Budibase was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (internal-tools), 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.
← all 20902 open source comparisons
Side by side
| AppSmith | Budibase | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 41K | ★ 28K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Custom / other |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 4.8K | ⑂ 2.2K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick AppSmith if
- You weight community size — 41K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Budibase if
- You want the Budibase feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and Budibase fits your workflow better
About AppSmith
Organizations build custom applications like dashboards, admin panels, customer 360, IT automation, and service management tools to help their teams work more efficiently and effectively. Appsmith is an open source low code platform that streamlines custom application development, deployment, and maintenance. Learn more on our website. Installation There are two ways to start using Appsmith: Signup on Appsmith Cloud. Install Appsmith on your machine. See the installation guides below. For other deployment options, see the Installation Guides documentation. Development To build and run Appsmith in your local dev…
read the full AppSmith overview →
About Budibase
Budibase AI Agents that run your operations Budibase is an open source operations platform that saves engineers 100s of hours building Agents, Apps and Automations, securely. 🤖 🎨 🚀 Get started we host (Budibase Cloud) · Get started you host (Docker, K8s, DO) · Docs · Feature request · Report a bug · Support: Discussions ✨ Features Run your operations on one platform Handle requests, automate workflows, manage processes, and connect your business systems without stitching together multiple tools. Employees ask questions, request approvals, and report issues every day. Budibase agents understand these requests…
read the full Budibase overview →
More in Developer Tools
Related comparisons
More Frameworks & Platforms projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the Frameworks & Platforms field.
Frequently asked questions
Is AppSmith or Budibase more popular?
AppSmith has 41,153 GitHub stars and Budibase has 28,376. AppSmith has the larger community by that measure.
Are AppSmith and Budibase free?
Both are open source. AppSmith is licensed under Apache-2.0, and Budibase has no licence declared in this registry. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between AppSmith and Budibase?
AppSmith is written in TypeScript and Budibase in TypeScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, AppSmith or Budibase?
Choose AppSmith if you want the larger community (41,153 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose Budibase if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.