head to head · open source
Invidious vs BlokDust
Invidious has 26,007 GitHub stars, 2,912 forks, 480 open issues and last shipped yesterday. BlokDust has 629 stars, 44 forks, 23 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Invidious leads on adoption by 4,035% (26,007 vs 629 stars). Invidious is written in Crystal under AGPL-3.0; BlokDust is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0. Invidious has attracted 11% as many forks as stars, BlokDust 7%. Invidious 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
| Invidious | BlokDust | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 26K | ★ 629 |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Crystal | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-14 | 2026-11-14 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.9K | ⑂ 44 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Invidious if
- You weight community size — 26K stars and counting
- You want the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Crystal
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick BlokDust if
- You want the BlokDust 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 BlokDust fits your workflow better
About Invidious
Invidious An open source alternative front end to YouTube Website • Instances list • FAQ • Documentation • Contribute • Donate Chat with us: Screenshots Features User features Lightweight No ads No tracking No JavaScript required Light/Dark themes Customizable homepage Subscriptions independent from Google Notifications for all subscribed channels Audio only mode (with background play on mobile) Support for Reddit comments Available in many languages, thanks to our translators Data import/export Import subscriptions from YouTube, NewPipe and FreeTube Import watch history from YouTube and NewPipe Export…
read the full Invidious overview →
About BlokDust
BlokDust 2 A visual, physics driven music playground. Drop blocks on a grid; nearby blocks connect; particle emitters and lasers fire into sound sources to make self playing musical environments. A faithful, much faster rebuild of BlokDust v1 (2015), for the web and as VST3/AU plug ins and a standalone app. Play it: blokdust.funputs.com · Plug ins: Settings › DOWNLOAD on the site (macOS and Windows, free) Status: 2.0 is out (November 2026): the website and the free plug ins for macOS and Windows. Next: an iPad (AUv3) version. See the roadmap and what's new since v1. Docs: docs/ · architecture · decisions · specs…
read the full BlokDust overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Invidious or BlokDust more popular?
Invidious has 26,007 GitHub stars and BlokDust has 629. Invidious has the larger community by that measure.
Are Invidious and BlokDust free?
Both are open source. Invidious is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and BlokDust under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Invidious and BlokDust?
Invidious is written in Crystal and BlokDust 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, Invidious or BlokDust?
Choose Invidious if you want the larger community (26,007 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose BlokDust if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.