head to head · open source
Files vs yazi
Files has 46,461 GitHub stars, 3,012 forks, 458 open issues and last shipped yesterday. yazi has 43,192 stars, 1,055 forks, 65 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Files leads on adoption by 8% (46,461 vs 43,192 stars). Files is written in C# under MIT; yazi is written in Rust under MIT. Files has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, yazi 2%. Files was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (developer-tools, 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 | yazi | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 46K | ★ 43K |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | C# | Rust |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.0K | ⑂ 1.1K |
| 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 yazi if
- You want the yazi feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Rust
- You evaluated both and yazi 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 yazi
Special thanks to: Yazi ⚡️ Blazing Fast Terminal File Manager Yazi (means "duck") is a terminal file manager written in Rust, based on non blocking async I/O. It aims to provide an efficient, user friendly, and customizable file management experience. 💡 A new article explaining its internal workings: Why is Yazi Fast? 🚀 Full Asynchronous Support : All I/O operations are asynchronous, CPU tasks are spread across multiple threads, making the most of available resources. 💪 Powerful Async Task Scheduling and Management : Provides real time progress updates, task cancellation, and internal task priority…
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Frequently asked questions
Is Files or yazi more popular?
Files has 46,461 GitHub stars and yazi has 43,192. Files has the larger community by that measure.
Are Files and yazi free?
Both are open source. Files is licensed under MIT and yazi under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Files and yazi?
Files is written in C# and yazi in Rust. 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 yazi?
Choose Files if you want the larger community (46,461 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose yazi if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.