head to head · open source
Files vs explorerplusplus
Files has 45,731 GitHub stars, 2,946 forks, 458 open issues and last shipped 5 days ago. explorerplusplus has 3,301 stars, 426 forks, 253 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Files leads on adoption by 1,285% (45,731 vs 3,301 stars). Files is written in C# under MIT; explorerplusplus is written in C++ under GPL-3.0. Files has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, explorerplusplus 13%. explorerplusplus was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (file-manager), 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
| Files | explorerplusplus | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 46K | ★ 3.3K |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | C# | C++ |
| Last push | 2026-09-24 | 2026-09-28 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.9K | ⑂ 426 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Files if
- You weight community size — 46K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches C#
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick explorerplusplus if
- You want the explorerplusplus feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You evaluated both and explorerplusplus fits your workflow better
About Files
Files is a modern, MIT licensed file manager for Windows, written in C and maintained by an open source community, for Windows users who want a customizable, actively developed alternative for organising files and folders.
read the full Files overview →
About explorerplusplus
Explorer++ is a lightweight, fast and completely portable open source file manager for Windows, written in C++ and licensed under GPL 3.0, aimed at Windows users who want tabbed browsing and more advanced file operations than the built in File Explorer provides.
read the full explorerplusplus overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Files or explorerplusplus more popular?
Files has 45,731 GitHub stars and explorerplusplus has 3,301. Files has the larger community by that measure.
Are Files and explorerplusplus free?
Both are open source. Files is licensed under MIT and explorerplusplus under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Files and explorerplusplus?
Files is written in C# and explorerplusplus 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, Files or explorerplusplus?
Choose Files if you want the larger community (45,731 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose explorerplusplus if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.