head to head · open source
frigate vs iOS
frigate has 37,160 GitHub stars, 3,782 forks, 95 open issues and last shipped yesterday. iOS has 2,396 stars, 552 forks, 293 open issues and last shipped yesterday. frigate leads on adoption by 1,451% (37,160 vs 2,396 stars). frigate is written in Python under MIT; iOS is written in Swift under Apache-2.0. frigate has attracted 10% as many forks as stars, iOS 23%. frigate was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (home-assistant, home-automation), 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
| frigate | iOS | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 37K | ★ 2.4K |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | Swift |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.8K | ⑂ 552 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick frigate if
- You weight community size — 37K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick iOS if
- You want the iOS feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Swift
- You evaluated both and iOS fits your workflow better
About frigate
Frigate NVR™ Realtime Object Detection for IP Cameras \[English\] 简体中文 A complete and local NVR designed for Home Assistant with AI object detection. Uses OpenCV and Tensorflow to perform realtime object detection locally for IP cameras. Use of a GPU or AI accelerator is highly recommended. AI accelerators will outperform even the best CPUs with very little overhead. See Frigate's supported object detectors. Tight integration with Home Assistant via a custom component Designed to minimize resource use and maximize performance by only looking for objects when and where it is necessary Leverages multiprocessing…
read the full frigate overview →
About iOS
Home Assistant for Apple Platforms ================= Getting Started Home Assistant uses Bundler, Homebrew, and SPM to manage build dependencies. You'll need Xcode 27.0 (or later), currently a beta, which you can download from Apple Developer Downloads. You can get the app running using the following commands: Once this completes, you can launch HomeAssistant.xcodeproj and run the App Debug scheme onto your simulator or iOS device. Testing just the frontend To just test the frontend, you can use a simulator version built by our GitHub actions. 1. Install Xcode from the App Store making sure it's at least the…
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Frequently asked questions
Is frigate or iOS more popular?
frigate has 37,160 GitHub stars and iOS has 2,396. frigate has the larger community by that measure.
Are frigate and iOS free?
Both are open source. frigate is licensed under MIT and iOS under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between frigate and iOS?
frigate is written in Python and iOS in Swift. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, frigate or iOS?
Choose frigate if you want the larger community (37,160 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose iOS if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.