head to head · open source
mall vs realm-swift
mall has 84,792 GitHub stars, 29,827 forks, 15 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. realm-swift has 16,609 stars, 2,241 forks, 499 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. mall leads on adoption by 411% (84,792 vs 16,609 stars). mall is written in Java under Apache-2.0; realm-swift is written in Objective-C under Apache-2.0. mall has attracted 35% as many forks as stars, realm-swift 13%. realm-swift 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
| mall | realm-swift | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 85K | ★ 17K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Java | Objective-C |
| Last push | 2026-09-15 | 2026-09-15 |
| Forks | ⑂ 30K | ⑂ 2.2K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick mall if
- You weight community size — 85K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick realm-swift if
- You want the realm-swift feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Objective-C
- You evaluated both and realm-swift fits your workflow better
About mall
mall is a complete e commerce system built on Spring Boot and MyBatis, distributed as a Java project under the Apache 2.0 license. It ships two applications in one repository: a storefront system for shoppers and an administrative back office for operators. The storefront covers the home portal, product recommendation, product search, product display, shopping cart, order flow, member center, customer service, and help center. The back office covers product management, order management, member management, promotion management, operations management, content management, statistics reports, finance management, perm…
About realm-swift
Realm Database is a mobile database that runs directly inside phones, tablets, and wearables, and it is for iOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS developers who need a replacement for Core Data and SQLite.
read the full realm-swift overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is mall or realm-swift more popular?
mall has 84,792 GitHub stars and realm-swift has 16,609. mall has the larger community by that measure.
Are mall and realm-swift free?
Both are open source. mall is licensed under Apache-2.0 and realm-swift under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between mall and realm-swift?
mall is written in Java and realm-swift in Objective-C. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, mall or realm-swift?
Choose mall if you want the larger community (84,792 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose realm-swift if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.