head to head · open source
Browser Use vs fscrawler
Browser Use has 119,977 GitHub stars, 13,371 forks, 421 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. fscrawler has 1,455 stars, 307 forks, 87 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Browser Use leads on adoption by 8,146% (119,977 vs 1,455 stars). Browser Use is written in Python under MIT; fscrawler is written in Java under Apache-2.0. Browser Use has attracted 11% as many forks as stars, fscrawler 21%. fscrawler 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
| Browser Use | fscrawler | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 120K | ★ 1.5K |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | Java |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-03 |
| Forks | ⑂ 13K | ⑂ 307 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Browser Use if
- You weight community size — 120K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick fscrawler if
- You want the fscrawler feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You evaluated both and fscrawler fits your workflow better
About Browser Use
Navigate the web like a human does. Find an available slot, pick a date and time, handle the CAPTCHA, and book a driving test. Explore more demos and prompts ↗ Which Browser Use do I need? Path 1: Fully Hosted Cloud: Scale up with a fully hosted agent and browser. Path 2: CLI: Automate your own browser tasks. Path 3: Python Library: Run the open source Browser Use agent locally from your own code. Quickstart Path 1: Fully Hosted Cloud Scale browser automation with our hosted agent, stealth browsers, and infrastructure for profiles, recordings, and data policies. Get started with the API ↗ New Google, GitHub, or…
read the full Browser Use overview →
About fscrawler
File System Crawler for Elasticsearch Welcome to FSCrawler for Elasticsearch This crawler helps to index binary documents such as PDF, Open Office, MS Office. Main features : Local file system (or a mounted drive) crawling and index new files, update existing ones and removes old ones. Remote file system over SSH/FTP crawling. REST interface to let you "upload" your binary documents to elasticsearch. Latest versions Current versions are: Quick start Run Elasticsearch with start local : Run FSCrawler with Docker: Then open Kibana and watch for your documents coming to the fscrawler alias: Or search for some text…
read the full fscrawler overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Browser Use or fscrawler more popular?
Browser Use has 119,977 GitHub stars and fscrawler has 1,455. Browser Use has the larger community by that measure.
Are Browser Use and fscrawler free?
Both are open source. Browser Use is licensed under MIT and fscrawler under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Browser Use and fscrawler?
Browser Use is written in Python and fscrawler 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, Browser Use or fscrawler?
Choose Browser Use if you want the larger community (119,977 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose fscrawler if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.