head to head · open source
Odoo vs server-tools
Odoo has 54,424 GitHub stars, 33,741 forks, 10,282 open issues and last shipped yesterday. server-tools has 930 stars, 1,697 forks, 286 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. Odoo leads on adoption by 5,752% (54,424 vs 930 stars). Odoo is written in Python under a custom or non-standard licence; server-tools is written in Python under AGPL-3.0. Odoo has attracted 62% as many forks as stars, server-tools 182%. Odoo was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 3 topic tags (erp, odoo, python), 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
| Odoo | server-tools | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 54K | ★ 930 |
| License | Custom / other | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Python | Python |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-15 |
| Forks | ⑂ 34K | ⑂ 1.7K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Odoo if
- You weight community size — 54K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick server-tools if
- You want the server-tools feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and server-tools fits your workflow better
About Odoo
Odoo is an open source suite of business applications built as modular web apps, forming a full featured ERP when combined. It lives in the Python based ecosystem and provides pre built modules for core business functions including CRM, accounting, inventory, e commerce, and HR, all sharing a unified data model and interface.
About server-tools
server tools is a collection of Odoo addons maintained by the Odoo Community Association (OCA) that gives administrators and technical staff finer control over an Odoo server, and it is written for people who run, host, or extend Odoo rather than for end users of the ERP itself.
read the full server-tools overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Odoo or server-tools more popular?
Odoo has 54,424 GitHub stars and server-tools has 930. Odoo has the larger community by that measure.
Are Odoo and server-tools free?
Both are open source. Odoo has no licence declared in this registry, and server-tools is licensed under AGPL-3.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Odoo and server-tools?
Odoo is written in Python and server-tools in Python. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Odoo or server-tools?
Choose Odoo if you want the larger community (54,424 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose server-tools if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.