head to head · open source
AstrBot vs venom
AstrBot has 45,879 GitHub stars, 3,368 forks, 1,516 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. venom has 6,598 stars, 1,323 forks, 62 open issues and last shipped 2 months ago. AstrBot leads on adoption by 595% (45,879 vs 6,598 stars). AstrBot is written in Python under AGPL-3.0; venom is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0. AstrBot has attracted 7% as many forks as stars, venom 20%. AstrBot was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (ai, chatbot), 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
| AstrBot | venom | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 46K | ★ 6.6K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-03 | 2026-09-09 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.4K | ⑂ 1.3K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick AstrBot if
- You weight community size — 46K stars and counting
- You want the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick venom if
- You want the venom feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and venom fits your workflow better
About AstrBot
简体中文 ｜ 繁體中文 ｜ 日本語 ｜ Français ｜ Español ｜ Русский Documentation ｜ Blog ｜ Roadmap ｜ Issue Tracker ｜ Email Support AstrBot is an open source all in one Agent chatbot platform that integrates with mainstream instant messaging apps. It provides reliable and scalable conversational AI infrastructure for individuals, developers, and teams. Whether you're building a personal AI companion, intelligent customer service, automation assistant, or enterprise knowledge base, AstrBot enables you to quickly build production ready AI applications within your IM platform workflows. Key Features 1. 💯 Free & Open Source. 2. ✨ AI…
read the full AstrBot overview →
About venom
Venom v6 The next generation of WhatsApp automation. Completely rebuilt. Why Venom? Venom is not just another library. It's a complete automation platform designed from the ground up for performance, reliability, and developer experience. Built on top of proven technologies, Venom gives you full control over WhatsApp Web through a clean, intuitive API — whether you're building a simple chatbot or a large scale enterprise solution. What's new in v6 Install Requires Node.js 18+ . Chromium is downloaded automatically on install. 🧪 Nightly builds 📦 Install from source Quick Start Get a fully functional bot running…
read the full venom overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is AstrBot or venom more popular?
AstrBot has 45,879 GitHub stars and venom has 6,598. AstrBot has the larger community by that measure.
Are AstrBot and venom free?
Both are open source. AstrBot is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and venom under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between AstrBot and venom?
AstrBot is written in Python and venom 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, AstrBot or venom?
Choose AstrBot if you want the larger community (45,879 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose venom if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.