head to head · open source
iptv-sources vs iptv-tool
iptv-sources has 8,982 GitHub stars, 1,537 forks, 1 open issues and last shipped today. iptv-tool has 1,118 stars, 295 forks, 9 open issues and last shipped 1 months ago. iptv-sources leads on adoption by 703% (8,982 vs 1,118 stars). iptv-sources is written in TypeScript under GPL-3.0; iptv-tool is written in PHP under GPL-2.0. iptv-sources has attracted 17% as many forks as stars, iptv-tool 26%. iptv-sources was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 4 topic tags (diyp, docker, iptv, iptv-m3u), 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
| iptv-sources | iptv-tool | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 9.0K | ★ 1.1K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | PHP |
| Last push | 2026-09-20 | 2026-08-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.5K | ⑂ 295 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick iptv-sources if
- You weight community size — 9.0K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick iptv-tool if
- You want the iptv-tool feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches PHP
- You evaluated both and iptv-tool fits your workflow better
About iptv-sources
iptv sources is a TypeScript application that automatically updates IPTV source lists and publishes them as M3U playlists and EPG data. It lives in the IPTV and media streaming ecosystem, where clients such as Kodi, TVBox, and DIYP compatible players consume M3U playlists and electronic program guide files. The project collects channel lists from a set of upstream repositories, including iptv org/iptv, YueChan/Live, YanG 1989/m3u, fanmingming/live, qwerttvv/Beijing IPTV, joevess/IPTV, and cymz6/AutoIPTV Hotel, and it gathers EPG data from fanmingming/live, 112114.xyz, and epg.51zmt.top:8000. It is released under …
read the full iptv-sources overview →
About iptv-tool
iptv tool is a self hosted IPTV toolbox written in PHP and distributed under the GPL 2.0 licence. It runs from a Docker image (taksss/php epg) built on Alpine, with images published for the amd64, arm64 and armv7 architectures and a compressed image size of about 20 MB. The project manages Electronic Program Guide data, live source lists and channel logos from a single web administration page, and it returns data in the DIYP/Baichuan, 超级直播 and xmltv formats.
read the full iptv-tool overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is iptv-sources or iptv-tool more popular?
iptv-sources has 8,982 GitHub stars and iptv-tool has 1,118. iptv-sources has the larger community by that measure.
Are iptv-sources and iptv-tool free?
Both are open source. iptv-sources is licensed under GPL-3.0 and iptv-tool under GPL-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between iptv-sources and iptv-tool?
iptv-sources is written in TypeScript and iptv-tool in PHP. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, iptv-sources or iptv-tool?
Choose iptv-sources if you want the larger community (8,982 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose iptv-tool if its feature set, stack or GPL-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.