head to head · open source
Docuseal vs Papermark
Docuseal has 18,558 GitHub stars, 1,867 forks, 121 open issues and last shipped 4 days ago. Papermark has 9,181 stars, 1,396 forks, 239 open issues and last shipped 21 days ago. Docuseal leads on adoption by 102% (18,558 vs 9,181 stars). Docuseal is written in Ruby under AGPL-3.0; Papermark is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence. Docuseal has attracted 10% as many forks as stars, Papermark 15%. Docuseal was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 3 topic tags (open-source, pdf, tailwindcss), 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
| Docuseal | Papermark | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 19K | ★ 9.2K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Custom / other |
| Written in | Ruby | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-14 | 2026-08-28 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.9K | ⑂ 1.4K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Docuseal if
- You weight community size — 19K stars and counting
- You want the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Ruby
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Papermark if
- You want the Papermark feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and Papermark fits your workflow better
About Docuseal
Docuseal is an open source document filling and signing platform for individuals and teams, and its repository describes it as an open source alternative to DocuSign. It is built in Ruby on Rails and uses a self hosted deployment model, with interface components associated with Tailwind CSS, Vue, and Hotwire Turbo.
read the full Docuseal overview →
About Papermark
Papermark open source document sharing alternative to DocSend. Project lives in Next.js/TypeScript web stack, category Business Software / Document Management & E Signatures. GitHub metadata: 9166 stars, 1392 forks, 239 open issues, last push 2026 08 28T15:58:25Z. README says built in analytics and custom domains. It is self hosted, open source, and customizable as needed. License field says NOASSERTION, so license terms need separate check.
read the full Papermark overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Docuseal or Papermark more popular?
Docuseal has 18,558 GitHub stars and Papermark has 9,181. Docuseal has the larger community by that measure.
Are Docuseal and Papermark free?
Both are open source. Docuseal is licensed under AGPL-3.0, and Papermark has no licence declared in this registry. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Docuseal and Papermark?
Docuseal is written in Ruby and Papermark in TypeScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Docuseal or Papermark?
Choose Docuseal if you want the larger community (18,558 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Papermark if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.