head to head · open source
Jellyfin vs BookWyrm
Jellyfin has 58,942 GitHub stars, 5,757 forks, 684 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. BookWyrm has 2,808 stars, 346 forks, 418 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Jellyfin leads on adoption by 1,999% (58,942 vs 2,808 stars). Jellyfin is written in C# under GPL-2.0; BookWyrm is written in Python under a custom or non-standard licence. Jellyfin has attracted 10% as many forks as stars, BookWyrm 12%. Jellyfin 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
| Jellyfin | BookWyrm | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 59K | ★ 2.8K |
| License | GPL-2.0 | Custom / other |
| Written in | C# | Python |
| Last push | 2026-11-01 | 2026-11-01 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.8K | ⑂ 346 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Jellyfin if
- You weight community size — 59K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C#
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick BookWyrm if
- You want the BookWyrm feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and BookWyrm fits your workflow better
About Jellyfin
Jellyfin The Free Software Media System Jellyfin is a Free Software Media System that puts you in control of managing and streaming your media. It is an alternative to the proprietary Emby and Plex, to provide media from a dedicated server to end user devices via multiple apps. Jellyfin is descended from Emby's 3.5.2 release and ported to the .NET platform to enable full cross platform support. There are no strings attached, no premium licenses or features, and no hidden agendas: just a team that wants to build something better and work together to achieve it. We welcome anyone who is interested in joining us in…
read the full Jellyfin overview →
About BookWyrm
BookWyrm Welcome to the codebase! BookWyrm is a social network for tracking your reading, talking about books, writing reviews, and discovering what to read next. Federation allows BookWyrm users to join small, trusted communities that can connect with one another, and with other ActivityPub services like Mastodon and Pleroma. 👋 Meaningful human interaction is the whole point: please feel welcome to participate regardless of your experience level with programming. We would love to help! By the same token, please do not submit any AI generated code or content. Links Project homepage Support Documentation About…
read the full BookWyrm overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Jellyfin or BookWyrm more popular?
Jellyfin has 58,942 GitHub stars and BookWyrm has 2,808. Jellyfin has the larger community by that measure.
Are Jellyfin and BookWyrm free?
Both are open source. Jellyfin is licensed under GPL-2.0, and BookWyrm has no licence declared in this registry. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Jellyfin and BookWyrm?
Jellyfin is written in C# and BookWyrm 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, Jellyfin or BookWyrm?
Choose Jellyfin if you want the larger community (58,942 stars) or its GPL-2.0 licence terms. Choose BookWyrm if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.