head to head · open source
CasaOS vs aaPanel
CasaOS has 37,232 GitHub stars, 2,187 forks, 833 open issues and last shipped 1.1 years ago. aaPanel has 3,058 stars, 762 forks, 92 open issues and last shipped 22 days ago. CasaOS leads on adoption by 1,118% (37,232 vs 3,058 stars). CasaOS is written in Go under Apache-2.0; aaPanel is written in JavaScript under a custom or non-standard licence. CasaOS has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, aaPanel 25%. aaPanel was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (docker), 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
| CasaOS | aaPanel | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 37K | ★ 3.1K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Custom / other |
| Written in | Go | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2025-08-06 | 2026-08-27 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.2K | ⑂ 762 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick CasaOS if
- You weight community size — 37K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick aaPanel if
- You want the aaPanel feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and aaPanel fits your workflow better
About CasaOS
CasaOS is an open source personal cloud operating system built for home servers. It provides a lightweight, user friendly interface to manage local storage, run containerized applications, and integrate smart devices—all without requiring deep technical knowledge. The project targets individuals and small households seeking autonomy over their data and infrastructure, replacing reliance on commercial cloud services with a self hosted alternative.
read the full CasaOS overview →
About aaPanel
aaPanel is a web based hosting control panel for Linux servers, distributed from the aaPanel GitHub repository under the infrastructure and operations category. It is written in JavaScript and installs on top of an existing Linux operating system, where it presents a graphical interface for managing the web server rather than requiring administrators to edit configuration files by hand. The project sits in the Linux server management ecosystem alongside the Apache, Nginx, MySQL, PHP and Docker tooling that it installs and administers. Its stated design goal is simplicity combined with power: a single panel that c…
read the full aaPanel overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is CasaOS or aaPanel more popular?
CasaOS has 37,232 GitHub stars and aaPanel has 3,058. CasaOS has the larger community by that measure.
Are CasaOS and aaPanel free?
Both are open source. CasaOS is licensed under Apache-2.0, and aaPanel has no licence declared in this registry. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between CasaOS and aaPanel?
CasaOS is written in Go and aaPanel 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, CasaOS or aaPanel?
Choose CasaOS if you want the larger community (37,232 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose aaPanel if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.