head to head · open source
Home Assistant vs pyatv
Home Assistant has 91,945 GitHub stars, 39,193 forks, 3,527 open issues and last shipped today. pyatv has 1,202 stars, 166 forks, 258 open issues and last shipped 3 months ago. Home Assistant leads on adoption by 7,549% (91,945 vs 1,202 stars). Home Assistant is written in Python under Apache-2.0; pyatv is written in Python under MIT. Home Assistant has attracted 43% as many forks as stars, pyatv 14%. Home Assistant was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 3 topic tags (asyncio, hacktoberfest, 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 | pyatv | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 92K | ★ 1.2K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Python | Python |
| Last push | 2026-11-04 | 2026-08-14 |
| Forks | ⑂ 39K | ⑂ 166 |
| 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 pyatv if
- You want the pyatv feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and pyatv 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 pyatv
A client library for Apple TV and AirPlay devices ================================================= This is an asyncio python library for interacting with Apple TV and AirPlay devices. It mainly targets Apple TVs (all generations, including tvOS 15 and later ), but also supports audio streaming via AirPlay to receivers like the HomePod, AirPort Express and third party speakers. It can act as remote control to the Music app/iTunes in macOS. All the documentation you need is available at pyatv.dev . What can it do? Some examples include: Remote control commands Metadata retrieval with push updates Stream files via…
read the full pyatv overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Home Assistant or pyatv more popular?
Home Assistant has 91,945 GitHub stars and pyatv has 1,202. Home Assistant has the larger community by that measure.
Are Home Assistant and pyatv free?
Both are open source. Home Assistant is licensed under Apache-2.0 and pyatv under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Home Assistant and pyatv?
Home Assistant is written in Python and pyatv in Python. 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 pyatv?
Choose Home Assistant if you want the larger community (91,945 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose pyatv if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.