head to head · open source
espectre vs frontend
espectre has 9,728 GitHub stars, 739 forks, 13 open issues and last shipped yesterday. frontend has 5,778 stars, 3,932 forks, 383 open issues and last shipped yesterday. espectre leads on adoption by 68% (9,728 vs 5,778 stars). espectre is written in Python under GPL-3.0; frontend is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0. espectre has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, frontend 68%. frontend was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (home-assistant), 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
| espectre | frontend | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 9.7K | ★ 5.8K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 739 | ⑂ 3.9K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick espectre if
- You weight community size — 9.7K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick frontend if
- You want the frontend feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and frontend fits your workflow better
About espectre
ESPectre Turn an ESP32 into a private, local Wi Fi motion sensor. When someone moves through a room, they change the way Wi Fi signals travel through it. ESPectre reads those changes and reports motion in real time. No camera, no microphone, no wearable, and no dedicated radar hardware: just a supported ESP32 and the Wi Fi network already in the room. ESPectre is an open source platform that brings together ready to flash firmware, an embeddable C++ SDK, a MicroPython implementation, browser tools, a host CLI, an open dataset, open model weights, and the research workflow used to build and validate the…
read the full espectre overview →
About frontend
Home Assistant Frontend This is the repository for the official Home Assistant frontend. View demo of Home Assistant More information about Home Assistant Frontend development instructions Development Initial setup: script/setup Development: Instructions Production build: pnpm build Gallery: cd gallery && script/develop gallery Frontend development Classic environment A complete guide can be found at the following link. It describes a short guide for the build of project. License Home Assistant is open source and Apache 2 licensed. Feel free to browse the repository, learn and reuse parts in your own projects…
read the full frontend overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is espectre or frontend more popular?
espectre has 9,728 GitHub stars and frontend has 5,778. espectre has the larger community by that measure.
Are espectre and frontend free?
Both are open source. espectre is licensed under GPL-3.0 and frontend under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between espectre and frontend?
espectre is written in Python and frontend in TypeScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, espectre or frontend?
Choose espectre if you want the larger community (9,728 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose frontend if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.