head to head · open source
JumpServer vs hydra
JumpServer has 31,569 GitHub stars, 5,793 forks, 97 open issues and last shipped today. hydra has 17,553 stars, 1,609 forks, 98 open issues and last shipped 2 months ago. JumpServer leads on adoption by 80% (31,569 vs 17,553 stars). JumpServer is written in Python under GPL-3.0; hydra is written in Go under Apache-2.0. JumpServer has attracted 18% as many forks as stars, hydra 9%. JumpServer 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
| JumpServer | hydra | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 32K | ★ 18K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-20 | 2026-07-29 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.8K | ⑂ 1.6K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick JumpServer if
- You weight community size — 32K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick hydra if
- You want the hydra feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and hydra fits your workflow better
About JumpServer
JumpServer is an open source Privileged Access Management (PAM) platform built for DevOps and IT teams. It functions as a bastion host, enabling secure, on demand access to SSH, RDP, Kubernetes, databases, and RemoteApp endpoints via a web browser. The project lives in the Python/Django ecosystem and is licensed under GPL 3.0, with active community contributions and integrations.
read the full JumpServer overview →
About hydra
Ory Hydra is an OpenID Certified OpenID Connect and OAuth 2.1 provider written in Go and licensed under Apache 2.0, built for teams that need standards compliant token issuance, client management, and consent flows while user accounts stay in their own existing identity system.
read the full hydra overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is JumpServer or hydra more popular?
JumpServer has 31,569 GitHub stars and hydra has 17,553. JumpServer has the larger community by that measure.
Are JumpServer and hydra free?
Both are open source. JumpServer is licensed under GPL-3.0 and hydra under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between JumpServer and hydra?
JumpServer is written in Python and hydra in Go. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, JumpServer or hydra?
Choose JumpServer if you want the larger community (31,569 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose hydra if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.