head to head · open source
bentopdf vs docspell
bentopdf has 15,578 GitHub stars, 1,339 forks, 156 open issues and last shipped yesterday. docspell has 2,329 stars, 184 forks, 235 open issues and last shipped yesterday. bentopdf leads on adoption by 569% (15,578 vs 2,329 stars). bentopdf is written in JavaScript under AGPL-3.0; docspell is written in Elm under AGPL-3.0. bentopdf has attracted 9% as many forks as stars, docspell 8%. docspell was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (pdf), 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
| bentopdf | docspell | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 16K | ★ 2.3K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | JavaScript | Elm |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.3K | ⑂ 184 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick bentopdf if
- You weight community size — 16K stars and counting
- You want the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick docspell if
- You want the docspell feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Elm
- You evaluated both and docspell fits your workflow better
About bentopdf
BentoPDF is a JavaScript, browser based PDF toolkit that merges, edits, converts, and processes documents entirely on the client, and it is aimed at individuals and teams who need those document workflows without sending files to a third party service.
read the full bentopdf overview →
About docspell
Docspell is a self hosted document management system that helps households, families, and small groups or companies organise the piles of paper, scans, and e mails that accumulate from scanners and other sources, using machine learning and OCR to cut down the manual effort of adding metadata.
read the full docspell overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is bentopdf or docspell more popular?
bentopdf has 15,578 GitHub stars and docspell has 2,329. bentopdf has the larger community by that measure.
Are bentopdf and docspell free?
Both are open source. bentopdf is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and docspell under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between bentopdf and docspell?
bentopdf is written in JavaScript and docspell in Elm. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, bentopdf or docspell?
Choose bentopdf if you want the larger community (15,578 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose docspell if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.