head to head · open source
Reflex vs gentle-shell
Reflex has 28,893 GitHub stars, 1,777 forks, 346 open issues and last shipped today. gentle-shell has 934 stars, 138 forks, 369 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Reflex leads on adoption by 2,993% (28,893 vs 934 stars). Reflex is written in Python under Apache-2.0; gentle-shell is written in TypeScript under MIT. Reflex has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, gentle-shell 15%. Reflex was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (developer-tools), 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
| Reflex | gentle-shell | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 29K | ★ 934 |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Python | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-20 | 2026-09-19 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.8K | ⑂ 138 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Reflex if
- You weight community size — 29K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick gentle-shell if
- You want the gentle-shell feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and gentle-shell fits your workflow better
About Reflex
Reflex is an open source Apache 2.0 Python library for building full stack web apps and internal tools entirely in Python, aimed at Python developers who want a browser based frontend without learning JavaScript.
read the full Reflex overview →
About gentle-shell
gentle shell is a senior architect development harness for the Pi platform that turns a terminal coding agent into a controlled workspace with spec driven development, focused subagents, strict TDD evidence, review guardrails, and skill discovery.
read the full gentle-shell overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Reflex or gentle-shell more popular?
Reflex has 28,893 GitHub stars and gentle-shell has 934. Reflex has the larger community by that measure.
Are Reflex and gentle-shell free?
Both are open source. Reflex is licensed under Apache-2.0 and gentle-shell under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Reflex and gentle-shell?
Reflex is written in Python and gentle-shell 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, Reflex or gentle-shell?
Choose Reflex if you want the larger community (28,893 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose gentle-shell if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.