head to head · open source
Appwrite vs xmake
Appwrite has 57,854 GitHub stars, 5,830 forks, 1,008 open issues and last shipped yesterday. xmake has 12,286 stars, 965 forks, 255 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Appwrite leads on adoption by 371% (57,854 vs 12,286 stars). Appwrite is written in TypeScript under BSD-3-Clause; xmake is written in Lua under Apache-2.0. Appwrite has attracted 10% as many forks as stars, xmake 8%. Appwrite was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
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
| Appwrite | xmake | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 58K | ★ 12K |
| License | BSD-3-Clause | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Lua |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-01 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.8K | ⑂ 965 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Appwrite if
- You weight community size — 58K stars and counting
- You want the BSD-3-Clause license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick xmake if
- You want the xmake feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Lua
- You evaluated both and xmake fits your workflow better
About Appwrite
Appwrite Appwrite is an open source, all in one development platform. Use built in backend infrastructure and web hosting, all from a single place. English 简体中文 Appwrite is an open source development platform for building web, mobile, and AI applications. It brings together backend infrastructure and web hosting in one place, so teams can build, ship, and scale without stitching together a fragmented stack. Appwrite is available as a managed cloud platform and can also be self hosted on infrastructure you control. With Appwrite, you can add authentication, databases, storage, functions, messaging, realtime…
read the full Appwrite overview →
About xmake
xmake A cross platform build utility based on Lua Modern C/C++ build tool: Simple, Fast, Powerful dependency package integration Support this project Support this project by becoming a sponsor. Your logo will show up here with a link to your website. 🙏 Introduction (中文) What is Xmake? 1. Xmake is a cross platform build utility based on the Lua scripting language. 2. Xmake is very lightweight and has no dependencies outside of the standard library. 3. Uses the xmake.lua file to maintain project builds with a simple and readable syntax. Xmake can be used to directly build source code (like with Make or Ninja), or…
read the full xmake overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Appwrite or xmake more popular?
Appwrite has 57,854 GitHub stars and xmake has 12,286. Appwrite has the larger community by that measure.
Are Appwrite and xmake free?
Both are open source. Appwrite is licensed under BSD-3-Clause and xmake under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Appwrite and xmake?
Appwrite is written in TypeScript and xmake in Lua. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Appwrite or xmake?
Choose Appwrite if you want the larger community (57,854 stars) or its BSD-3-Clause licence terms. Choose xmake if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.