head to head · open source
n8n vs ESPresense
n8n has 209,375 GitHub stars, 61,361 forks, 1,143 open issues and last shipped yesterday. ESPresense has 1,500 stars, 190 forks, 121 open issues and last shipped yesterday. n8n leads on adoption by 13,858% (209,375 vs 1,500 stars). n8n is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; ESPresense is written in C under AGPL-3.0. n8n has attracted 29% as many forks as stars, ESPresense 13%. 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 | ESPresense | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 209K | ★ 1.5K |
| License | Custom / other | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | C |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 61K | ⑂ 190 |
| 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 ESPresense if
- You want the ESPresense feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C
- You evaluated both and ESPresense 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 ESPresense
ESPresense An ESP32 based presence detection node for use with the Home Assistant mqtt room component or ESPresense companion for indoor positioning Documentation: Building: building. Release Notes: changelog. trigger CI
read the full ESPresense overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is n8n or ESPresense more popular?
n8n has 209,375 GitHub stars and ESPresense has 1,500. n8n has the larger community by that measure.
Are n8n and ESPresense free?
Both are open source. n8n has no licence declared in this registry, and ESPresense is licensed under AGPL-3.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between n8n and ESPresense?
n8n is written in TypeScript and ESPresense in C. 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 ESPresense?
Choose n8n if you want the larger community (209,375 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose ESPresense if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.