head to head · open source
copyparty vs psitransfer
copyparty has 46,853 GitHub stars, 1,903 forks, 252 open issues and last shipped yesterday. psitransfer has 1,953 stars, 247 forks, 109 open issues and last shipped 4 months ago. copyparty leads on adoption by 2,299% (46,853 vs 1,953 stars). copyparty is written in Python under MIT; psitransfer is written in JavaScript under BSD-2-Clause. copyparty has attracted 4% as many forks as stars, psitransfer 13%. 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.
← all 20902 open source comparisons
Side by side
| copyparty | psitransfer | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 47K | ★ 2.0K |
| License | MIT | BSD-2-Clause |
| Written in | Python | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-30 | 2026-06-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.9K | ⑂ 247 |
| 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 psitransfer if
- You want the psitransfer feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the BSD-2-Clause license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and psitransfer 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 psitransfer
PsiTransfer is a simple, open source, self hosted file sharing service written in JavaScript under the BSD 2 Clause licence, intended for individuals and teams that want to send large files without accounts, logins or a paid provider.
read the full psitransfer overview →
More in Productivity & Utilities
Related comparisons
More File Management & Sync projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the File Management & Sync field.
Frequently asked questions
Is copyparty or psitransfer more popular?
copyparty has 46,853 GitHub stars and psitransfer has 1,953. copyparty has the larger community by that measure.
Are copyparty and psitransfer free?
Both are open source. copyparty is licensed under MIT and psitransfer under BSD-2-Clause. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between copyparty and psitransfer?
copyparty is written in Python and psitransfer 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, copyparty or psitransfer?
Choose copyparty if you want the larger community (46,853 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose psitransfer if its feature set, stack or BSD-2-Clause licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.