head to head · open source
Bitwarden vs Aegis Authenticator
Bitwarden has 20,156 GitHub stars, 1,772 forks, 230 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Aegis Authenticator has 13,111 stars, 590 forks, 120 open issues and last shipped 12 days ago. Bitwarden leads on adoption by 54% (20,156 vs 13,111 stars). Bitwarden is written in C# under a custom or non-standard licence; Aegis Authenticator is written in Java under GPL-3.0. Bitwarden has attracted 9% as many forks as stars, Aegis Authenticator 5%. Bitwarden 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
| Bitwarden | Aegis Authenticator | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 20K | ★ 13K |
| License | Custom / other | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | C# | Java |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-06 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.8K | ⑂ 590 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Bitwarden if
- You weight community size — 20K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches C#
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Aegis Authenticator if
- You want the Aegis Authenticator feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You evaluated both and Aegis Authenticator fits your workflow better
About Bitwarden
Bitwarden Server is the backend infrastructure for Bitwarden client applications, and it lives in the .NET ecosystem. The repository contains the APIs, database, and core services that support secure password management for individuals and businesses.
read the full Bitwarden overview →
About Aegis Authenticator
Aegis Authenticator is a free and open source Android application for managing two step verification tokens. It is written in Java and released under the GPL 3.0 license, and it belongs to the Android productivity and secret management ecosystem.
read the full Aegis Authenticator overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Bitwarden or Aegis Authenticator more popular?
Bitwarden has 20,156 GitHub stars and Aegis Authenticator has 13,111. Bitwarden has the larger community by that measure.
Are Bitwarden and Aegis Authenticator free?
Both are open source. Bitwarden has no licence declared in this registry, and Aegis Authenticator is licensed under GPL-3.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Bitwarden and Aegis Authenticator?
Bitwarden is written in C# and Aegis Authenticator in Java. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Bitwarden or Aegis Authenticator?
Choose Bitwarden if you want the larger community (20,156 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose Aegis Authenticator if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.