head to head · open source
Browser Use vs single-file-cli
Browser Use has 119,977 GitHub stars, 13,371 forks, 421 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. single-file-cli has 1,682 stars, 147 forks, 49 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Browser Use leads on adoption by 7,033% (119,977 vs 1,682 stars). Browser Use is written in Python under MIT; single-file-cli is written in JavaScript under AGPL-3.0. Browser Use has attracted 11% as many forks as stars, single-file-cli 9%. single-file-cli 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 | single-file-cli | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 120K | ★ 1.7K |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Python | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-03 |
| Forks | ⑂ 13K | ⑂ 147 |
| 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 single-file-cli if
- You want the single-file-cli feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and single-file-cli 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 single-file-cli
SingleFile CLI (Command Line Interface) Introduction SingleFile can be launched from the command line by running it into a (headless) browser. It runs through Deno as a standalone script injected into the web page via the Chrome DevTools Protocol, or via WebDriver BiDi when using Firefox, instead of being embedded into a WebExtension. Installation SingleFile can be run without installing it, just download the executable file and save it in the directory of your choice here: Make sure Chrome or a Chromium based browser is installed in the default folder. Otherwise you might need to set the browser executable path…
read the full single-file-cli overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Browser Use or single-file-cli more popular?
Browser Use has 119,977 GitHub stars and single-file-cli has 1,682. Browser Use has the larger community by that measure.
Are Browser Use and single-file-cli free?
Both are open source. Browser Use is licensed under MIT and single-file-cli under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Browser Use and single-file-cli?
Browser Use is written in Python and single-file-cli in JavaScript. 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 single-file-cli?
Choose Browser Use if you want the larger community (119,977 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose single-file-cli if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.