head to head · open source
Browser Use vs IRremoteESP8266
Browser Use has 119,787 GitHub stars, 13,348 forks, 421 open issues and last shipped yesterday. IRremoteESP8266 has 3,661 stars, 945 forks, 105 open issues and last shipped 2 months ago. Browser Use leads on adoption by 3,172% (119,787 vs 3,661 stars). Browser Use is written in Python under MIT; IRremoteESP8266 is written in C++ under LGPL-2.1. Browser Use has attracted 11% as many forks as stars, IRremoteESP8266 26%. Browser Use 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 | IRremoteESP8266 | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 120K | ★ 3.7K |
| License | MIT | LGPL-2.1 |
| Written in | Python | C++ |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-08-23 |
| Forks | ⑂ 13K | ⑂ 945 |
| 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 IRremoteESP8266 if
- You want the IRremoteESP8266 feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the LGPL-2.1 license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You evaluated both and IRremoteESP8266 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 IRremoteESP8266
This library enables you to send and receive infra red signals on an ESP8266 or an ESP32 using the Arduino framework using common 940nm IR LEDs and common IR receiver modules. e.g. TSOP{17,22,24,36,38,44,48} demodulators etc. v2.9.0 Now Available Version 2.9.0 of the library is now available. You can view the Release Notes for all the significant changes. Upgrading from pre v2.0 Usage of the library has been slightly changed in v2.0. You will need to change your usage to work with v2.0 and beyond. You can read more about the changes required on our Upgrade to v2.0 page. Upgrading from pre v2.5 The library has…
read the full IRremoteESP8266 overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Browser Use or IRremoteESP8266 more popular?
Browser Use has 119,787 GitHub stars and IRremoteESP8266 has 3,661. Browser Use has the larger community by that measure.
Are Browser Use and IRremoteESP8266 free?
Both are open source. Browser Use is licensed under MIT and IRremoteESP8266 under LGPL-2.1. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Browser Use and IRremoteESP8266?
Browser Use is written in Python and IRremoteESP8266 in C++. 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 IRremoteESP8266?
Choose Browser Use if you want the larger community (119,787 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose IRremoteESP8266 if its feature set, stack or LGPL-2.1 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.