head to head · open source
LocalSend vs elio
LocalSend has 93,822 GitHub stars, 5,238 forks, 1,113 open issues and last shipped today. elio has 891 stars, 27 forks, 6 open issues and last shipped yesterday. LocalSend leads on adoption by 10,430% (93,822 vs 891 stars). LocalSend is written in Dart under Apache-2.0; elio is written in Rust under MIT. LocalSend has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, elio 3%. LocalSend 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 | elio | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 94K | ★ 891 |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Dart | Rust |
| Last push | 2026-10-10 | 2026-10-09 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.2K | ⑂ 27 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick LocalSend if
- You weight community size — 94K 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 elio if
- You want the elio feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Rust
- You evaluated both and elio 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 elio
elio is a snappy, batteries included terminal file manager written in Rust for Linux, macOS, and FreeBSD users who want rich previews, inline images, bulk actions, and trash support directly in their shell.
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Frequently asked questions
Is LocalSend or elio more popular?
LocalSend has 93,822 GitHub stars and elio has 891. LocalSend has the larger community by that measure.
Are LocalSend and elio free?
Both are open source. LocalSend is licensed under Apache-2.0 and elio under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between LocalSend and elio?
LocalSend is written in Dart and elio 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 elio?
Choose LocalSend if you want the larger community (93,822 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose elio if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.