head to head · open source
Files vs walk
Files has 46,600 GitHub stars, 3,026 forks, 458 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. walk has 3,653 stars, 110 forks, 10 open issues and last shipped 10 months ago. Files leads on adoption by 1,176% (46,600 vs 3,653 stars). Files is written in C# under MIT; walk is written in Go under MIT. Files has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, walk 3%. 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 | walk | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 47K | ★ 3.7K |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | C# | Go |
| Last push | 2026-11-11 | 2026-01-06 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.0K | ⑂ 110 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Files if
- You weight community size — 47K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches C#
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick walk if
- You want the walk feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and walk fits your workflow better
About Files
Files is a modern file manager that helps users organize their files and folders. Our mission with Files is to build the best file manager for Windows, and we’re proud to be building it out in the open so everyone can participate. User feedback helps shape the features we work on, & the bug reports on GitHub help to make Files more reliable. Built and maintained by the open source community, Files features robust multitasking experiences, file tags, deep integrations, and an intuitive design. Installing and running Files Files is a community driven project that depends on your support to grow and improve. Please…
read the full Files overview →
About walk
🥾 walk Walk — a terminal navigator; a cd and ls replacement. Run lk , navigate using arrows or hjkl. Press, esc to jump to a new location; or ctrl+c to stay. Install Or download prebuild binaries. Setup Put the next function into the .bashrc or a similar config: Bash/Zsh Fish PowerShell Now use lk command to start walking. Features Preview mode Press Space to toggle preview mode. Delete file or directory Press dd to delete file or directory. Press u to undo. Display icons Install Nerd Fonts and add icons flag. Image preview No additional setup is required. Usage Configuration The EDITOR or WALK EDITOR…
More in Productivity & Utilities
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Frequently asked questions
Is Files or walk more popular?
Files has 46,600 GitHub stars and walk has 3,653. Files has the larger community by that measure.
Are Files and walk free?
Both are open source. Files is licensed under MIT and walk under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Files and walk?
Files is written in C# and walk in Go. 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 walk?
Choose Files if you want the larger community (46,600 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose walk if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.