head to head · open source
LibreOffice vs IronCalc
LibreOffice has 4,373 GitHub stars, 945 forks, 0 open issues and last shipped yesterday. IronCalc has 4,163 stars, 183 forks, 256 open issues and last shipped yesterday. LibreOffice leads on adoption by 5% (4,373 vs 4,163 stars). LibreOffice is written in C++ under GPL-3.0; IronCalc is written in Rust under Apache-2.0. LibreOffice has attracted 22% as many forks as stars, IronCalc 4%. LibreOffice 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.
← all 8884 open source comparisons
Side by side
| LibreOffice | IronCalc | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 4.4K | ★ 4.2K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | C++ | Rust |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 945 | ⑂ 183 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick LibreOffice if
- You weight community size — 4.4K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick IronCalc if
- You want the IronCalc feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Rust
- You evaluated both and IronCalc fits your workflow better
About LibreOffice
LibreOffice is an integrated office suite written in C++ and distributed under GPL 3.0. It lives in the open source productivity and office suite ecosystem, and it positions itself as an open alternative to Microsoft 365. The Document Foundation backs the project as a community of enterprises, developers, and volunteers.
read the full LibreOffice overview →
About IronCalc
IronCalc is a spreadsheet engine and set of tools. It is the main engine of the IronCalc ecosystem, and it lives in the Rust open source spreadsheet ecosystem. The project provides a work in progress engine, an xlsx reader, and an xlsx writer. It is designed to be embedded, self hosted, or run in the browser.
read the full IronCalc overview →
More in Productivity & Utilities
Related comparisons
More Office Suites projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the Office Suites field.
Frequently asked questions
Is LibreOffice or IronCalc more popular?
LibreOffice has 4,373 GitHub stars and IronCalc has 4,163. LibreOffice has the larger community by that measure.
Are LibreOffice and IronCalc free?
Both are open source. LibreOffice is licensed under GPL-3.0 and IronCalc under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between LibreOffice and IronCalc ?
LibreOffice is written in C++ and IronCalc in Rust. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, LibreOffice or IronCalc ?
Choose LibreOffice if you want the larger community (4,373 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose IronCalc if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.