head to head · open source
copyparty vs explorerplusplus
copyparty has 46,832 GitHub stars, 1,903 forks, 252 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. explorerplusplus has 3,301 stars, 426 forks, 253 open issues and last shipped yesterday. copyparty leads on adoption by 1,319% (46,832 vs 3,301 stars). copyparty is written in Python under MIT; explorerplusplus is written in C++ under GPL-3.0. copyparty has attracted 4% as many forks as stars, explorerplusplus 13%. explorerplusplus 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
| copyparty | explorerplusplus | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 47K | ★ 3.3K |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Python | C++ |
| Last push | 2026-09-27 | 2026-09-28 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.9K | ⑂ 426 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick copyparty if
- You weight community size — 47K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick explorerplusplus if
- You want the explorerplusplus feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You evaluated both and explorerplusplus fits your workflow better
About copyparty
copyparty is a portable file server that turns almost any device into a file server with resumable uploads and downloads through any web browser, built for self hosters, homelab operators, NAS owners and anyone who wants to share files directly from their own hardware.
read the full copyparty overview →
About explorerplusplus
Explorer++ is a lightweight, fast and completely portable open source file manager for Windows, written in C++ and licensed under GPL 3.0, aimed at Windows users who want tabbed browsing and more advanced file operations than the built in File Explorer provides.
read the full explorerplusplus overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is copyparty or explorerplusplus more popular?
copyparty has 46,832 GitHub stars and explorerplusplus has 3,301. copyparty has the larger community by that measure.
Are copyparty and explorerplusplus free?
Both are open source. copyparty is licensed under MIT and explorerplusplus under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between copyparty and explorerplusplus?
copyparty is written in Python and explorerplusplus 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, copyparty or explorerplusplus?
Choose copyparty if you want the larger community (46,832 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose explorerplusplus if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.