head to head · open source
espectre vs HomeSpan
espectre has 9,778 GitHub stars, 743 forks, 13 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. HomeSpan has 2,210 stars, 206 forks, 9 open issues and last shipped 2 months ago. espectre leads on adoption by 342% (9,778 vs 2,210 stars). espectre is written in Python under GPL-3.0; HomeSpan is written in C++ under MIT. espectre has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, HomeSpan 9%. espectre was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
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
| espectre | HomeSpan | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 9.8K | ★ 2.2K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Python | C++ |
| Last push | 2026-11-07 | 2026-09-15 |
| Forks | ⑂ 743 | ⑂ 206 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick espectre if
- You weight community size — 9.8K 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 HomeSpan if
- You want the HomeSpan feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You evaluated both and HomeSpan fits your workflow better
About espectre
ESPectre Turn an ESP32 into a private, local Wi Fi motion sensor. When someone moves through a room, they change the way Wi Fi signals travel through it. ESPectre reads those changes and reports motion in real time. No camera, no microphone, no wearable, and no dedicated radar hardware: just a supported ESP32 and the Wi Fi network already in the room. ESPectre is an open source platform that brings together ready to flash firmware, an embeddable C++ SDK, a MicroPython implementation, browser tools, a host CLI, an open dataset, open model weights, and the research workflow used to build and validate the…
read the full espectre overview →
About HomeSpan
Welcome! Welcome to HomeSpan a robust and extremely easy to use Arduino library for creating your own ESP32 based HomeKit devices entirely within the Arduino IDE. HomeSpan provides a microcontroller focused implementation of Apple's HomeKit Accessory Protocol Specification Release R2 (HAP R2) designed specifically for the Espressif ESP32 microcontroller running within the Arduino IDE. HomeSpan pairs directly to HomeKit via your home WiFi network without the need for any external bridges or components. With HomeSpan you can use the full power of the ESP32's I/O functionality to create custom control software…
read the full HomeSpan overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is espectre or HomeSpan more popular?
espectre has 9,778 GitHub stars and HomeSpan has 2,210. espectre has the larger community by that measure.
Are espectre and HomeSpan free?
Both are open source. espectre is licensed under GPL-3.0 and HomeSpan under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between espectre and HomeSpan?
espectre is written in Python and HomeSpan in C++. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, espectre or HomeSpan?
Choose espectre if you want the larger community (9,778 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose HomeSpan if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.