head to head · open source
copyparty vs projectsend
copyparty has 46,832 GitHub stars, 1,903 forks, 252 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. projectsend has 2,024 stars, 359 forks, 9 open issues and last shipped 4 days ago. copyparty leads on adoption by 2,214% (46,832 vs 2,024 stars). copyparty is written in Python under MIT; projectsend is written in PHP under GPL-2.0. copyparty has attracted 4% as many forks as stars, projectsend 18%. copyparty was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (file-sharing), 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
| copyparty | projectsend | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 47K | ★ 2.0K |
| License | MIT | GPL-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | PHP |
| Last push | 2026-09-27 | 2026-09-25 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.9K | ⑂ 359 |
| 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 projectsend if
- You want the projectsend feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches PHP
- You evaluated both and projectsend 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 projectsend
ProjectSend is a self hosted, GPLv2 licensed PHP and MySQL application that lets you share files with clients from your own server, with each client signing in to a private page, and it is aimed at freelancers, agencies and teams who would rather not hand client documents to a third party service.
read the full projectsend overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is copyparty or projectsend more popular?
copyparty has 46,832 GitHub stars and projectsend has 2,024. copyparty has the larger community by that measure.
Are copyparty and projectsend free?
Both are open source. copyparty is licensed under MIT and projectsend under GPL-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between copyparty and projectsend?
copyparty is written in Python and projectsend in PHP. 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 projectsend?
Choose copyparty if you want the larger community (46,832 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose projectsend if its feature set, stack or GPL-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.