head to head · open source
LocalSend vs dufs
LocalSend has 92,017 GitHub stars, 5,135 forks, 1,113 open issues and last shipped 5 days ago. dufs has 10,756 stars, 589 forks, 18 open issues and last shipped 3 months ago. LocalSend leads on adoption by 755% (92,017 vs 10,756 stars). LocalSend is written in Dart under Apache-2.0; dufs is written in Rust under Apache-2.0. LocalSend has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, dufs 5%. LocalSend was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (file-sharing), 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
| LocalSend | dufs | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 92K | ★ 11K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Dart | Rust |
| Last push | 2026-09-14 | 2026-06-29 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.1K | ⑂ 589 |
| 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 dufs if
- You want the dufs 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 dufs 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 dufs
Dufs is a Rust command line file server, released under the Apache 2.0 licence and distributed as dufs , that serves static files, accepts uploads, supports search and access control, and speaks WebDAV from a single binary.
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Frequently asked questions
Is LocalSend or dufs more popular?
LocalSend has 92,017 GitHub stars and dufs has 10,756. LocalSend has the larger community by that measure.
Are LocalSend and dufs free?
Both are open source. LocalSend is licensed under Apache-2.0 and dufs under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between LocalSend and dufs?
LocalSend is written in Dart and dufs 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, LocalSend or dufs?
Choose LocalSend if you want the larger community (92,017 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose dufs if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.