head to head · open source
Hoppscotch vs light-4j
Hoppscotch has 80,724 GitHub stars, 6,225 forks, 820 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. light-4j has 3,676 stars, 623 forks, 15 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Hoppscotch leads on adoption by 2,096% (80,724 vs 3,676 stars). Hoppscotch is written in TypeScript under MIT; light-4j is written in Java under Apache-2.0. Hoppscotch has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, light-4j 17%. light-4j 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
| Hoppscotch | light-4j | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 81K | ★ 3.7K |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Java |
| Last push | 2026-10-31 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 6.2K | ⑂ 623 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Hoppscotch if
- You weight community size — 81K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick light-4j if
- You want the light-4j feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You evaluated both and light-4j fits your workflow better
About Hoppscotch
Hoppscotch Open Source API Development Ecosystem Built with ❤︎ by contributors We highly recommend you take a look at the Hoppscotch Documentation to learn more about the app. Support Features ❤️ Lightweight: Crafted with minimalistic UI design. ⚡️ Fast: Send requests and get responses in real time. 🗄️ HTTP Methods: Request methods define the type of action you are requesting to be performed. GET Requests retrieve resource information POST The server creates a new entry in a database PUT Updates an existing resource PATCH Very similar to PUT but makes a partial update on a resource DELETE Deletes resource or…
read the full Hoppscotch overview →
About light-4j
A fast, lightweight and cloud native microservices framework. Stack Overflow Google Group Gitter Chat Subreddit Youtube Channel Documentation Contribution Guide Why call it Light 4J Light means lightweight, lightning fast and shedding light on how to program with modern Java SE for cloud native deployment. Why am I doing it I had been working on the Java EE platforms since early 2000 and suffered the performance and productivity issues. In 2014, I realized that the IT industry was moving from Monolithic to Microservices and from on premise data centers to the public clouds. To reduce the production cost for my…
read the full light-4j overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Hoppscotch or light-4j more popular?
Hoppscotch has 80,724 GitHub stars and light-4j has 3,676. Hoppscotch has the larger community by that measure.
Are Hoppscotch and light-4j free?
Both are open source. Hoppscotch is licensed under MIT and light-4j under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Hoppscotch and light-4j?
Hoppscotch is written in TypeScript and light-4j 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, Hoppscotch or light-4j?
Choose Hoppscotch if you want the larger community (80,724 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose light-4j if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.