head to head · open source
n8n vs button-card
n8n has 209,375 GitHub stars, 61,361 forks, 1,143 open issues and last shipped yesterday. button-card has 2,523 stars, 285 forks, 31 open issues and last shipped 2 months ago. n8n leads on adoption by 8,199% (209,375 vs 2,523 stars). n8n is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; button-card is written in TypeScript under MIT. n8n has attracted 29% as many forks as stars, button-card 11%. n8n 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
| n8n | button-card | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 209K | ★ 2.5K |
| License | Custom / other | MIT |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-09-09 |
| Forks | ⑂ 61K | ⑂ 285 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick n8n if
- You weight community size — 209K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick button-card if
- You want the button-card feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and button-card fits your workflow better
About n8n
n8n – The Platform for AI Agents and Workflow Automation Fair code platform to build and deploy AI agents and workflows. Combine a visual canvas with custom code, run it self hosted or in the cloud, and connect to 1500+ integrations. AI automation you can trust with real work, from prototype to production. Key Capabilities AI Native Automation Platform : Build and operationalize AI workflows and multi step agents using your own data, models, and tools Model Flexibility, No Lock In : Connect to OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, or open source models and switch providers without changing your architecture From Prototype…
About button-card
Button Card by @RomRider [![Stable][releases shield]][releases] [![Beta][releases dev shield]][releases dev] [![HACS Badge][hacs badge]][hacs link] ![Project Maintenance][maintenance shield] ![Downloads][downloads] [![GitHub Activity][commits shield]][commits] [![License][license shield]](LICENSE.md) [![Discord][discord shield]][discord] [![Community Forum][forum shield]][forum] [commits shield]: [commits]: [discord]: [discord shield]: [forum shield]: [forum]: [license shield]: [maintenance shield]: [releases shield]: [releases]: [releases dev shield]: [releases dev]: [hacs badge]: [downloads]: [hacs link]…
read the full button-card overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is n8n or button-card more popular?
n8n has 209,375 GitHub stars and button-card has 2,523. n8n has the larger community by that measure.
Are n8n and button-card free?
Both are open source. n8n has no licence declared in this registry, and button-card is licensed under MIT. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between n8n and button-card?
n8n is written in TypeScript and button-card 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, n8n or button-card?
Choose n8n if you want the larger community (209,375 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose button-card if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.