head to head · open source
Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF vs karate
Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF has 22,109 GitHub stars, 3,800 forks, 31 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. karate has 9,002 stars, 2,048 forks, 18 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF leads on adoption by 146% (22,109 vs 9,002 stars). Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF is written in Python under GPL-3.0; karate is written in Java under MIT. Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF has attracted 17% as many forks as stars, karate 23%. karate was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (api-testing), 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
| Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF | karate | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 22K | ★ 9.0K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Python | Java |
| Last push | 2026-11-01 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.8K | ⑂ 2.0K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF if
- You weight community size — 22K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick karate if
- You want the karate feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You evaluated both and karate fits your workflow better
About Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF
Mobile Security Framework (MobSF) Mobile Security Framework (MobSF) is a security research platform for mobile applications in Android, iOS and Windows Mobile. MobSF can be used for a variety of use cases such as mobile application security, penetration testing, malware analysis, and privacy analysis. The Static Analyzer supports popular mobile app binaries like APK, IPA, APPX and source code. Meanwhile, the Dynamic Analyzer supports both Android and iOS applications and offers a platform for interactive instrumented testing, runtime data and network traffic analysis. MobSF seamlessly integrates with your…
read the full Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF overview →
About karate
Karate The open source tool that combines API testing, mocks, performance testing, and UI automation into a single, unified framework. 📖 Documentation: docs.karatelabs.io Looking for the old README? The previous README monolith is preserved at: github.com/karatelabs/karate/tree/v1.5.2.RC2 Anchor links (e.g. syntax guide , configuration ) can be appended to navigate directly to specific sections. Karate v2 development notes See README V2.md for v2 module descriptions, feature highlights, and migration notes.
read the full karate overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF or karate more popular?
Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF has 22,109 GitHub stars and karate has 9,002. Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF has the larger community by that measure.
Are Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF and karate free?
Both are open source. Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF is licensed under GPL-3.0 and karate under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF and karate?
Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF is written in Python and karate 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, Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF or karate?
Choose Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF if you want the larger community (22,109 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose karate if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.