head to head · open source
GDevelop vs MonoGame
GDevelop has 28,355 GitHub stars, 1,641 forks, 633 open issues and last shipped yesterday. MonoGame has 14,602 stars, 3,119 forks, 766 open issues and last shipped yesterday. GDevelop leads on adoption by 94% (28,355 vs 14,602 stars). GDevelop is written in JavaScript under a custom or non-standard licence; MonoGame is written in C# under a custom or non-standard licence. GDevelop has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, MonoGame 21%. GDevelop was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 4 topic tags (3d, game-development, game-engine, gamedev), 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
| GDevelop | MonoGame | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 28K | ★ 15K |
| License | Custom / other | Custom / other |
| Written in | JavaScript | C# |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.6K | ⑂ 3.1K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick GDevelop if
- You weight community size — 28K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick MonoGame if
- You want the MonoGame feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches C#
- You evaluated both and MonoGame fits your workflow better
About GDevelop
GDevelop is a full featured, no code, open source game development software. You can build 2D, 3D and multiplayer games for mobile (iOS, Android), desktop and the web. GDevelop is designed to be fast and incredibly intuitive: make games using an easy to understand yet powerful event based system and modular behaviors. Create with AI that assists or builds alongside you. Getting started Are you interested in contributing to GDevelop for the first time? Take a look at the list of good first issues , good first contributions or the "🏐 not too hard" cards on the Roadmap. Games made with GDevelop Find GDevelop games…
read the full GDevelop overview →
About MonoGame
MonoGame One framework for creating powerful cross platform games Supported Platforms • Resources • Samples • Support and Contributions • Source Code • Helpful Links • License Overview MonoGame is a simple and powerful .NET framework for creating games for desktop PCs, video game consoles, and mobile devices using the C programming language. It has been successfully used to create games such as Streets of Rage 4, Carrion, Celeste, Stardew Valley, and many others. It is an open source re implementation of the discontinued Microsoft's XNA Framework. Supported Platforms We support a growing list of platforms across…
read the full MonoGame overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is GDevelop or MonoGame more popular?
GDevelop has 28,355 GitHub stars and MonoGame has 14,602. GDevelop has the larger community by that measure.
Are GDevelop and MonoGame free?
Neither GDevelop nor MonoGame declares a licence in this registry, so check each project's own repository before relying on either for a commercial use. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between GDevelop and MonoGame?
GDevelop is written in JavaScript and MonoGame in C#. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, GDevelop or MonoGame?
Choose GDevelop if you want the larger community (28,355 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose MonoGame if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.