head to head · open source
Home Assistant vs HomeSpan
Home Assistant has 91,945 GitHub stars, 39,193 forks, 3,527 open issues and last shipped yesterday. HomeSpan has 2,205 stars, 205 forks, 9 open issues and last shipped 2 months ago. Home Assistant leads on adoption by 4,070% (91,945 vs 2,205 stars). Home Assistant is written in Python under Apache-2.0; HomeSpan is written in C++ under MIT. Home Assistant has attracted 43% as many forks as stars, HomeSpan 9%. Home Assistant was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (home-automation), 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
| Home Assistant | HomeSpan | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 92K | ★ 2.2K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Python | C++ |
| Last push | 2026-11-04 | 2026-09-15 |
| Forks | ⑂ 39K | ⑂ 205 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Home Assistant if
- You weight community size — 92K 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 HomeSpan if
- You want the HomeSpan feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You evaluated both and HomeSpan fits your workflow better
About Home Assistant
Home Assistant Chat Status ================================================================================= Open source home automation that puts local control and privacy first. Powered by a worldwide community of tinkerers and DIY enthusiasts. Perfect to run on a Raspberry Pi or a local server. Check out home assistant.io for a demo , installation instructions , tutorials and documentation . Featured integrations The system is built using a modular approach so support for other devices or actions can be implemented easily. See also the section on architecture and the section on creating your own components…
read the full Home Assistant overview →
About HomeSpan
Welcome! Welcome to HomeSpan a robust and extremely easy to use Arduino library for creating your own ESP32 based HomeKit devices entirely within the Arduino IDE. HomeSpan provides a microcontroller focused implementation of Apple's HomeKit Accessory Protocol Specification Release R2 (HAP R2) designed specifically for the Espressif ESP32 microcontroller running within the Arduino IDE. HomeSpan pairs directly to HomeKit via your home WiFi network without the need for any external bridges or components. With HomeSpan you can use the full power of the ESP32's I/O functionality to create custom control software…
read the full HomeSpan overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Home Assistant or HomeSpan more popular?
Home Assistant has 91,945 GitHub stars and HomeSpan has 2,205. Home Assistant has the larger community by that measure.
Are Home Assistant and HomeSpan free?
Both are open source. Home Assistant is licensed under Apache-2.0 and HomeSpan under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Home Assistant and HomeSpan?
Home Assistant is written in Python and HomeSpan 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, Home Assistant or HomeSpan?
Choose Home Assistant if you want the larger community (91,945 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose HomeSpan if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.