head to head · open source
Ghostwriter vs faction
Ghostwriter has 1,954 GitHub stars, 258 forks, 38 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. faction has 605 stars, 66 forks, 16 open issues and last shipped today. Ghostwriter leads on adoption by 223% (1,954 vs 605 stars). Ghostwriter is written in Python under BSD-3-Clause; faction is written in Java under GPL-2.0. Ghostwriter has attracted 13% as many forks as stars, faction 11%. faction was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (penetration-testing, reporting), 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
| Ghostwriter | faction | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 2.0K | ★ 605 |
| License | BSD-3-Clause | GPL-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | Java |
| Last push | 2026-11-03 | 2026-11-05 |
| Forks | ⑂ 258 | ⑂ 66 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Ghostwriter if
- You weight community size — 2.0K stars and counting
- You want the BSD-3-Clause license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick faction if
- You want the faction feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You evaluated both and faction fits your workflow better
About Ghostwriter
Ghostwriter Ghostwriter is an open source platform designed to enhance offensive security operations by simplifying report writing, asset tracking, and assessment management. It offers tools for managing clients, creating a reusable findings library, and organizing the infrastructure and domains utilized during assessments. With its powerful reporting engine, Ghostwriter includes comprehensive collaborative writing features and customizable report templates, allowing teams to produce polished deliverables with minimal manual effort. Ghostwriter comes equipped with "enterprise level" features, such as role based…
read the full Ghostwriter overview →
About faction
OWASP FACTION PenTesting Report Generation and Collaboration Framework OWASP Faction 2.0 Has been released! 🎉 Faction 2.0 is a major update and will begin replacing this version. You can run it here OWASP Faction 1.X Info Faction is now an OWASP Project! You can find more information here Sponsors Premium Sponsors otto js PCI and Client Side Security Secninjaz Technologies LLP Become a Sponsor ❤️ If you like the project and would like to see it advance then consider being a sponsor. All sponsors get access to the Faction discord server and will have bug reports prioritized. Just click the sponsor links at the…
read the full faction overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Ghostwriter or faction more popular?
Ghostwriter has 1,954 GitHub stars and faction has 605. Ghostwriter has the larger community by that measure.
Are Ghostwriter and faction free?
Both are open source. Ghostwriter is licensed under BSD-3-Clause and faction under GPL-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Ghostwriter and faction?
Ghostwriter is written in Python and faction in Java. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Ghostwriter or faction?
Choose Ghostwriter if you want the larger community (1,954 stars) or its BSD-3-Clause licence terms. Choose faction if its feature set, stack or GPL-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.