head to head · open source
ERPNext vs frappe
ERPNext has 39,337 GitHub stars, 12,837 forks, 1,822 open issues and last shipped today. frappe has 10,792 stars, 5,327 forks, 2,003 open issues and last shipped today. ERPNext leads on adoption by 265% (39,337 vs 10,792 stars). ERPNext is written in Python under GPL-3.0; frappe is written in Python under MIT. ERPNext has attracted 33% as many forks as stars, frappe 49%. frappe was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (erpnext, frappe), 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
| ERPNext | frappe | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 39K | ★ 11K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Python | Python |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-18 |
| Forks | ⑂ 13K | ⑂ 5.3K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick ERPNext if
- You weight community size — 39K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick frappe if
- You want the frappe feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and frappe fits your workflow better
About ERPNext
ERPNext is a free and open source Enterprise Resource Planning system built on the Frappe Framework. It unifies core business functions—including accounting, procurement, manufacturing, CRM, HRMS, and asset management—into a single platform, eliminating the need for multiple proprietary tools. The project lives in the Python based Frappe ecosystem and is licensed under GPL 3.0.
read the full ERPNext overview →
About frappe
Frappe Framework is a full stack, low code web framework written in Python and JavaScript, licensed under MIT. It runs on the server side on Python and MariaDB, and it ships with a tightly integrated client side library that handles the browser layer of an application. The project sits in the Python and JavaScript web development ecosystem, and it has been developed for roughly fifteen years, with its first work beginning in 2005 and its repository now holding over ten thousand stars and more than five thousand forks.
read the full frappe overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is ERPNext or frappe more popular?
ERPNext has 39,337 GitHub stars and frappe has 10,792. ERPNext has the larger community by that measure.
Are ERPNext and frappe free?
Both are open source. ERPNext is licensed under GPL-3.0 and frappe under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between ERPNext and frappe?
ERPNext is written in Python and frappe in Python. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, ERPNext or frappe?
Choose ERPNext if you want the larger community (39,337 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose frappe if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.