head to head · open source
Files vs ranger
Files has 45,547 GitHub stars, 2,920 forks, 458 open issues and last shipped today. ranger has 17,405 stars, 942 forks, 896 open issues and last shipped 11 days ago. Files leads on adoption by 162% (45,547 vs 17,405 stars). Files is written in C# under MIT; ranger is written in Python under GPL-3.0. Files has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, ranger 5%. Files 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 | ranger | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 46K | ★ 17K |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | C# | Python |
| Last push | 2026-09-20 | 2026-09-09 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.9K | ⑂ 942 |
| 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 ranger if
- You want the ranger feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and ranger 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 ranger
Ranger is a console file manager with VI key bindings, written in Python and released under the GNU General Public License version 3, for terminal users who want to browse, preview, and manipulate files without leaving a Unix shell.
read the full ranger overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Files or ranger more popular?
Files has 45,547 GitHub stars and ranger has 17,405. Files has the larger community by that measure.
Are Files and ranger free?
Both are open source. Files is licensed under MIT and ranger under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Files and ranger?
Files is written in C# and ranger in Python. 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 ranger?
Choose Files if you want the larger community (45,547 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose ranger if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.