head to head · open source
univer vs etherpad
univer has 22,854 GitHub stars, 1,920 forks, 151 open issues and last shipped yesterday. etherpad has 18,616 stars, 3,060 forks, 31 open issues and last shipped yesterday. univer leads on adoption by 23% (22,854 vs 18,616 stars). univer is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0; etherpad is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0. univer has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, etherpad 16%. etherpad was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (collaboration), 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
| univer | etherpad | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 23K | ★ 19K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.9K | ⑂ 3.1K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick univer if
- You weight community size — 23K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick etherpad if
- You want the etherpad feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and etherpad fits your workflow better
About univer
A full stack, isomorphic office SDK for building spreadsheets, documents, and presentations. Build embeddable productivity experiences with a plugin architecture, Canvas based rendering, a formula engine, and one Facade API that works in the browser and on Node.js. English 简体中文 繁體中文 日本語 한국어 Español 📖 Documentation ✨ Showcase 📘 API Reference 📝 Blog ✨ What is Univer? Univer is an open source SDK for creating office applications inside your own product. It gives you the building blocks for spreadsheet, document, and presentation experiences without forcing you into a hosted app or a fixed UI. Use Univer when you…
read the full univer overview →
About etherpad
Etherpad — the editor for documents that matter Real time collaborative editing where authorship is the default, your server is the only server, and you decide what AI (if any) ever touches your text. About Etherpad is a real time collaborative editor for documents that matter. Every keystroke is attributed to its author. Every revision is preserved. The timeslider lets you scrub through a document's entire history, character by character. Author colours make collaboration visible at a glance — not buried in a menu. Etherpad runs on your server, under your governance. No telemetry. No upsells. AI is a plugin you…
read the full etherpad overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is univer or etherpad more popular?
univer has 22,854 GitHub stars and etherpad has 18,616. univer has the larger community by that measure.
Are univer and etherpad free?
Both are open source. univer is licensed under Apache-2.0 and etherpad under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between univer and etherpad?
univer is written in TypeScript and etherpad 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, univer or etherpad?
Choose univer if you want the larger community (22,854 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose etherpad if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.