head to head · open source
ERPNext vs Frappe Books
ERPNext has 39,326 GitHub stars, 12,835 forks, 1,822 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Frappe Books has 4,967 stars, 1,148 forks, 141 open issues and last shipped 12 days ago. ERPNext leads on adoption by 692% (39,326 vs 4,967 stars). ERPNext is written in Python under GPL-3.0; Frappe Books is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0. ERPNext has attracted 33% as many forks as stars, Frappe Books 23%. ERPNext was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (accounting, 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 Books | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 39K | ★ 5.0K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Python | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-06 |
| Forks | ⑂ 13K | ⑂ 1.1K |
| 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 Books if
- You want the Frappe Books feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and Frappe Books 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 Books
Frappe Books is a free, open source desktop accounting application for small and medium sized businesses that runs offline on macOS, Windows and Linux, storing all financial data in a local SQLite file rather than on a remote server.
read the full Frappe Books overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is ERPNext or Frappe Books more popular?
ERPNext has 39,326 GitHub stars and Frappe Books has 4,967. ERPNext has the larger community by that measure.
Are ERPNext and Frappe Books free?
Both are open source. ERPNext is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Frappe Books under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between ERPNext and Frappe Books?
ERPNext is written in Python and Frappe Books 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, ERPNext or Frappe Books?
Choose ERPNext if you want the larger community (39,326 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Frappe Books if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.