head to head · open source
LocalSend vs cyberduck
LocalSend has 92,017 GitHub stars, 5,135 forks, 1,113 open issues and last shipped 5 days ago. cyberduck has 4,786 stars, 369 forks, 506 open issues and last shipped yesterday. LocalSend leads on adoption by 1,823% (92,017 vs 4,786 stars). LocalSend is written in Dart under Apache-2.0; cyberduck is written in Java under GPL-3.0. LocalSend has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, cyberduck 8%. cyberduck 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
| LocalSend | cyberduck | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 92K | ★ 4.8K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Dart | Java |
| Last push | 2026-09-14 | 2026-09-18 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.1K | ⑂ 369 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick LocalSend if
- You weight community size — 92K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Dart
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick cyberduck if
- You want the cyberduck feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You evaluated both and cyberduck fits your workflow better
About LocalSend
LocalSend is a free, open source, cross platform application that shares files and messages directly between nearby devices over the local network, and it is built for anyone who wants AirDrop style transfers without an internet connection or a third party server.
read the full LocalSend overview →
About cyberduck
Cyberduck is a libre FTP, SFTP, WebDAV, Amazon S3, Backblaze B2, Microsoft Azure & OneDrive and OpenStack Swift file transfer client for macOS and Windows, released under the GNU General Public License version 3 and developed at the iterate ch/cyberduck repository.
read the full cyberduck overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is LocalSend or cyberduck more popular?
LocalSend has 92,017 GitHub stars and cyberduck has 4,786. LocalSend has the larger community by that measure.
Are LocalSend and cyberduck free?
Both are open source. LocalSend is licensed under Apache-2.0 and cyberduck under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between LocalSend and cyberduck?
LocalSend is written in Dart and cyberduck in Java. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, LocalSend or cyberduck?
Choose LocalSend if you want the larger community (92,017 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose cyberduck if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.