head to head · open source
iwe vs projectmem
iwe has 1,816 GitHub stars, 94 forks, 1 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. projectmem has 875 stars, 53 forks, 2 open issues and last shipped 7 days ago. iwe leads on adoption by 108% (1,816 vs 875 stars). iwe is written in Rust under Apache-2.0; projectmem is written in Python under MIT. iwe has attracted 5% as many forks as stars, projectmem 6%. iwe was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (ai-agents, ai-memory), 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
| iwe | projectmem | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 1.8K | ★ 875 |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Rust | Python |
| Last push | 2026-11-05 | 2026-11-01 |
| Forks | ⑂ 94 | ⑂ 53 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick iwe if
- You weight community size — 1.8K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Rust
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick projectmem if
- You want the projectmem feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and projectmem fits your workflow better
About iwe
IWE Memory system for you and your AI agents Turn your thinking into queryable context IWE turns a directory of markdown files into a knowledge graph — a connected structure you browse from your editor and your AI queries from the command line. Same files, same links, two interfaces. No cloud, no database, no lock in. Version everything with git. IWE is for people who want database style queries on their notes — "all drafts under this subtree", "every accepted decision in Q1" — without moving them into an actual database. Write in Markdown , structure with links, give AI agents the tools to navigate your…
About projectmem
🎉 v0.3.3 is out — pjm precheck no longer slows down as your project grows, and Windows works end to end. See what changed → We don't make AI smarter. We make it experienced. Coding agent memory — the local first memory + judgment layer for AI coding agents. One MCP server for every project. Save up to 50%+ of AI tokens. Stop repeating yesterday's bug. Website • Guide • Demo • Changelog • Paper pjm visualize — every case your project solved, what failed on the way, and what it saved. Generated locally from .projectmem/events.jsonl . 🚀 Start here — five minutes, once Five minutes if you follow along here. Want…
read the full projectmem overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is iwe or projectmem more popular?
iwe has 1,816 GitHub stars and projectmem has 875. iwe has the larger community by that measure.
Are iwe and projectmem free?
Both are open source. iwe is licensed under Apache-2.0 and projectmem under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between iwe and projectmem?
iwe is written in Rust and projectmem in Python. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, iwe or projectmem?
Choose iwe if you want the larger community (1,816 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose projectmem if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.