head to head · open source
docspell vs signaturepdf
docspell has 2,351 GitHub stars, 186 forks, 235 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. signaturepdf has 837 stars, 113 forks, 69 open issues and last shipped 22 days ago. docspell leads on adoption by 181% (2,351 vs 837 stars). docspell is written in Elm under AGPL-3.0; signaturepdf is written in JavaScript under AGPL-3.0. docspell has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, signaturepdf 14%. docspell was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (pdf), 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
| docspell | signaturepdf | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 2.4K | ★ 837 |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Elm | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-11 | 2026-10-22 |
| Forks | ⑂ 186 | ⑂ 113 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick docspell if
- You weight community size — 2.4K stars and counting
- You want the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Elm
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick signaturepdf if
- You want the signaturepdf feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and signaturepdf fits your workflow better
About docspell
Docspell Document Management System (DMS) Docspell is a personal document organizer. Or sometimes called a "Document Management System" (DMS). You'll need a scanner to convert your papers into files. Docspell can then assist in organizing the resulting mess :wink:. It can unify your files from scanners, emails and other sources. It is targeted for home use, i.e. families, households and also for smaller groups/companies. You can associate tags, set correspondends and lots of other predefined and custom metadata. If your documents are associated with such meta data, you can quickly find them later using the…
read the full docspell overview →
About signaturepdf
Signature PDF Free web software for signing (alone or with others), organizing (merge, sort, rotate, delete, extract pages, ...), editing metadatas or compressing PDFs. Instances List of instances where you can use this software: pdf.24eme.fr (by 24eme) pdf.libreon.fr (by Libreon) signature.pdf.hostux.net (by Hostux) pdf.nebulae.co (by Nebulae) pdf.kaosx.ovh pdf.ti nuage.fr (by Ti Nuage) pdf.cemea.org (by Les Ceméa) pdf.caph.info (by caph.info) pdf.spirio.fr (by Spirio.fr) pdf.sequanux.org (by Sequanux) pdf.deblan.org (by Deblan) pdf.ouvaton.coop (by OUVATON) signpdf.liber it.fr (by Liber IT)
read the full signaturepdf overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is docspell or signaturepdf more popular?
docspell has 2,351 GitHub stars and signaturepdf has 837. docspell has the larger community by that measure.
Are docspell and signaturepdf free?
Both are open source. docspell is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and signaturepdf under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between docspell and signaturepdf?
docspell is written in Elm and signaturepdf 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, docspell or signaturepdf?
Choose docspell if you want the larger community (2,351 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose signaturepdf if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.