head to head · open source
copyparty vs zrok
copyparty has 47,252 GitHub stars, 1,921 forks, 252 open issues and last shipped 14 days ago. zrok has 4,798 stars, 229 forks, 125 open issues and last shipped 4 days ago. copyparty leads on adoption by 885% (47,252 vs 4,798 stars). copyparty is written in Python under MIT; zrok is written in Go under Apache-2.0. copyparty has attracted 4% as many forks as stars, zrok 5%. zrok 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 | zrok | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 47K | ★ 4.8K |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | Go |
| Last push | 2026-10-21 | 2026-10-31 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.9K | ⑂ 229 |
| 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 zrok if
- You want the zrok feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and zrok fits your workflow better
About copyparty
💾🎉 copyparty turn almost any device into a file server with resumable uploads/downloads using any web browser server only needs Python (2 or 3), all dependencies optional 🔌 protocols: http(s) // webdav // sftp // ftp(s) // tftp // smb/cifs 📱 android app // iPhone shortcuts 👉 Get started! or visit the read only demo server 👀 running on a nuc in my basement 📷 screenshots: browser // upload // unpost // thumbnails // search // fsearch // zip DL // md viewer 🎬 videos: upload // cli upload // race the beam // 👉 feature showcase (youtube) built in Norway 🇳🇴 with contributions from not norway readme toc top…
read the full copyparty overview →
About zrok
zrok Secure internet sharing made simple Share anything, anywhere, instantly. Enterprise reliability. No firewall changes. No port forwarding. No hassle. zrok lets you securely share web services, files, and network resources with anyone—whether they're across the internet or your private network. Built on zero trust networking, it works through firewalls and NAT without requiring any network configuration changes. Quick start Get sharing in under 2 minutes: 1. Install zrok for your platform 2. Get an account : zrok invite (use the free zrok.io service) 3. Enable sharing : zrok enable That's it! Now you can…
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Frequently asked questions
Is copyparty or zrok more popular?
copyparty has 47,252 GitHub stars and zrok has 4,798. copyparty has the larger community by that measure.
Are copyparty and zrok free?
Both are open source. copyparty is licensed under MIT and zrok under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between copyparty and zrok?
copyparty is written in Python and zrok in Go. 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 zrok?
Choose copyparty if you want the larger community (47,252 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose zrok if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.