head to head · open source
Mole vs portabase
Mole has 67,731 GitHub stars, 2,382 forks, 6 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. portabase has 1,750 stars, 116 forks, 33 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Mole leads on adoption by 3,770% (67,731 vs 1,750 stars). Mole is written in Shell under GPL-3.0; portabase is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0. Mole has attracted 4% as many forks as stars, portabase 7%. Mole 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
| Mole | portabase | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 68K | ★ 1.8K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Shell | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.4K | ⑂ 116 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Mole if
- You weight community size — 68K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Shell
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick portabase if
- You want the portabase feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and portabase fits your workflow better
About Mole
Mole is an open source macOS utility that combines system cleanup, application management, and live monitoring into a single native app and CLI tool. It runs on macOS 12+ for both Intel and Apple Silicon, offering a unified interface for reclaiming disk space, uninstalling apps thoroughly, visualizing storage, and tracking real time system health. Built in Shell and licensed under GPL 3.0, it aggregates functionality found across several paid tools—CleanMyMac, AppCleaner, DaisyDisk, and iStat Menus—into one binary.
About portabase
Portabase is an Apache 2.0 licensed, self hosted TypeScript application that backs up and restores PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, MongoDB, SQLite, Firebird, Microsoft SQL Server, Azure SQL and Docker volumes from a single dashboard, and it is built for developers, DevOps engineers and self hosters who run their own database instances rather than buying a managed backup service.
read the full portabase overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Mole or portabase more popular?
Mole has 67,731 GitHub stars and portabase has 1,750. Mole has the larger community by that measure.
Are Mole and portabase free?
Both are open source. Mole is licensed under GPL-3.0 and portabase under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Mole and portabase?
Mole is written in Shell and portabase in TypeScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Mole or portabase?
Choose Mole if you want the larger community (67,731 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose portabase if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.