head to head · open source
EspoCRM vs Malak
EspoCRM has 3,368 GitHub stars, 972 forks, 69 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Malak has 0 stars, 0 forks, 0 open issues and last shipped —. EspoCRM leads on adoption by 0% (3,368 vs 0 stars). EspoCRM is written in PHP under AGPL-3.0; Malak is written in various languages under AGPL-3.0. EspoCRM has attracted 29% as many forks as stars, Malak 0%. EspoCRM 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
| EspoCRM | Malak | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 3.4K | ★ 0 |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | PHP | — |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | — |
| Forks | ⑂ 972 | ⑂ 0 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick EspoCRM if
- You weight community size — 3.4K stars and counting
- You want the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches PHP
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Malak if
- You want the Malak feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- You evaluated both and Malak fits your workflow better
About EspoCRM
EspoCRM is a free, open source customer relationship management application written in PHP. It lives in the open source business software ecosystem for CRM and sales systems, and it combines a single page frontend with a REST API backend. The project describes itself as a platform for storing, organizing, and managing leads, contacts, sales opportunities, marketing campaigns, support cases, and related business information.
read the full EspoCRM overview →
About Malak
Malak is an open source tool in the Business Software / CRM & Sales category, distributed under the AGPL 3.0 licence, that its own description says is built to streamline investor relations and fundraising management for the teams that handle those activities.
read the full Malak overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is EspoCRM or Malak more popular?
EspoCRM has 3,368 GitHub stars and Malak has 0. EspoCRM has the larger community by that measure.
Are EspoCRM and Malak free?
Both are open source. EspoCRM is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Malak under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between EspoCRM and Malak?
EspoCRM is written in PHP and Malak in various languages. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, EspoCRM or Malak?
Choose EspoCRM if you want the larger community (3,368 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Malak if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.