head to head · open source
it-tools vs AppSmith
it-tools has 41,253 GitHub stars, 5,584 forks, 821 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. AppSmith has 41,247 stars, 4,839 forks, 4,467 open issues and last shipped yesterday. it-tools leads on adoption by 0% (41,253 vs 41,247 stars). it-tools is written in Vue under GPL-3.0; AppSmith is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0. it-tools has attracted 14% as many forks as stars, AppSmith 12%. AppSmith was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (developer-tools), 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.
← all 20902 open source comparisons
Side by side
| it-tools | AppSmith | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 41K | ★ 41K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Vue | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-12 | 2026-11-13 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.6K | ⑂ 4.8K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick it-tools if
- You weight community size — 41K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Vue
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick AppSmith if
- You want the AppSmith feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and AppSmith fits your workflow better
About it-tools
Useful tools for developer and people working in IT. Try it! Functionalities and roadmap Please check the issues to see if some feature listed to be implemented. You have an idea of a tool? Submit a feature request! Self host Self host solutions for your homelab From docker hub: From github packages: Other solutions: Cloudron Tipi Unraid Contribute Recommended IDE Setup VSCode with the following extensions: Volar (and disable Vetur) TypeScript Vue Plugin (Volar). ESLint i18n Ally with the following settings: Type Support for .vue Imports in TS TypeScript cannot handle type information for .vue imports by…
read the full it-tools overview →
About AppSmith
Organizations build custom applications like dashboards, admin panels, customer 360, IT automation, and service management tools to help their teams work more efficiently and effectively. Appsmith is an open source low code platform that streamlines custom application development, deployment, and maintenance. Learn more on our website. Installation There are two ways to start using Appsmith: Signup on Appsmith Cloud. Install Appsmith on your machine. See the installation guides below. For other deployment options, see the Installation Guides documentation. Development To build and run Appsmith in your local dev…
read the full AppSmith overview →
More in Developer Tools
Related comparisons
More Frameworks & Platforms projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the Frameworks & Platforms field.
Frequently asked questions
Is it-tools or AppSmith more popular?
it-tools has 41,253 GitHub stars and AppSmith has 41,247. it-tools has the larger community by that measure.
Are it-tools and AppSmith free?
Both are open source. it-tools is licensed under GPL-3.0 and AppSmith under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between it-tools and AppSmith?
it-tools is written in Vue and AppSmith 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, it-tools or AppSmith?
Choose it-tools if you want the larger community (41,253 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose AppSmith if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.