head to head · open source
NocoDB vs FerretDB
NocoDB has 65,002 GitHub stars, 5,055 forks, 710 open issues and last shipped yesterday. FerretDB has 11,070 stars, 488 forks, 448 open issues and last shipped 4 months ago. NocoDB leads on adoption by 487% (65,002 vs 11,070 stars). NocoDB is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; FerretDB is written in Go under Apache-2.0. NocoDB has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, FerretDB 4%. NocoDB was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (hacktoberfest, postgresql), 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
| NocoDB | FerretDB | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 65K | ★ 11K |
| License | Custom / other | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-06-05 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.1K | ⑂ 488 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick NocoDB if
- You weight community size — 65K 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 FerretDB if
- You want the FerretDB feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and FerretDB fits your workflow better
About NocoDB
NocoDB is a free and self hostable open source Airtable alternative that turns an existing relational database into an intuitive spreadsheet interface, built for teams who want no code data management without moving their data into a hosted SaaS product.
read the full NocoDB overview →
About FerretDB
FerretDB is an open source, Apache 2.0 licensed proxy written in Go that converts MongoDB 5.0+ wire protocol queries into SQL and stores the data in PostgreSQL with the DocumentDB extension, giving developers a drop in MongoDB compatible document database without MongoDB's SSPL licence.
read the full FerretDB overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is NocoDB or FerretDB more popular?
NocoDB has 65,002 GitHub stars and FerretDB has 11,070. NocoDB has the larger community by that measure.
Are NocoDB and FerretDB free?
Both are open source. NocoDB has no licence declared in this registry, and FerretDB is licensed under Apache-2.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between NocoDB and FerretDB?
NocoDB is written in TypeScript and FerretDB in Go. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, NocoDB or FerretDB?
Choose NocoDB if you want the larger community (65,002 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose FerretDB if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.