head to head · open source
helix vs opcode
helix has 46,273 GitHub stars, 3,760 forks, 1,671 open issues and last shipped 4 days ago. opcode has 22,408 stars, 1,720 forks, 332 open issues and last shipped yesterday. helix leads on adoption by 107% (46,273 vs 22,408 stars). helix is written in Rust under MPL-2.0; opcode is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0. helix has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, opcode 8%. opcode was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
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
| helix | opcode | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 46K | ★ 22K |
| License | MPL-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Rust | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-15 | 2026-09-18 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.8K | ⑂ 1.7K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick helix if
- You weight community size — 46K stars and counting
- You want the MPL-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Rust
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick opcode if
- You want the opcode feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and opcode fits your workflow better
About helix
Helix is a post modern modal text editor written in Rust that brings the selection first Kakoune editing model to the terminal, aimed at developers who want Vim style modal editing with language tooling built into the editor rather than assembled from a plugin stack.
read the full helix overview →
About opcode
opcode is an open source desktop GUI application and toolkit for Claude Code that provides a visual command centre for projects, sessions, custom agents, Model Context Protocol servers, checkpoints, and API usage, aimed at developers who already work with Claude Code from the command line and want a graphical layer over it.
read the full opcode overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is helix or opcode more popular?
helix has 46,273 GitHub stars and opcode has 22,408. helix has the larger community by that measure.
Are helix and opcode free?
Both are open source. helix is licensed under MPL-2.0 and opcode under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between helix and opcode?
helix is written in Rust and opcode 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, helix or opcode?
Choose helix if you want the larger community (46,273 stars) or its MPL-2.0 licence terms. Choose opcode if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.