head to head · open source
OpenCode vs Emdash
OpenCode has 208,150 GitHub stars, 27,350 forks, 5,727 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Emdash has 5,763 stars, 592 forks, 95 open issues and last shipped yesterday. OpenCode leads on adoption by 3,512% (208,150 vs 5,763 stars). OpenCode is written in TypeScript under MIT; Emdash is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0. OpenCode has attracted 13% as many forks as stars, Emdash 10%. OpenCode 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
| OpenCode | Emdash | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 208K | ★ 5.8K |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 27K | ⑂ 592 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick OpenCode if
- You weight community size — 208K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Emdash if
- You want the Emdash 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 Emdash fits your workflow better
About OpenCode
OpenCode is an open source AI coding agent designed to operate across terminal, IDE, and desktop environments. It integrates directly into developer workflows to assist with writing, editing, and understanding code using natural language prompts. Built in TypeScript and licensed under MIT, it runs locally or via a desktop app and supports multiple languages and platforms.
read the full OpenCode overview →
About Emdash
Emdash is an open source desktop app and agentic development environment for developers who want to run several AI coding agents in parallel, each isolated in its own Git worktree, against local projects or remote machines over SSH.
read the full Emdash overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is OpenCode or Emdash more popular?
OpenCode has 208,150 GitHub stars and Emdash has 5,763. OpenCode has the larger community by that measure.
Are OpenCode and Emdash free?
Both are open source. OpenCode is licensed under MIT and Emdash under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between OpenCode and Emdash?
OpenCode is written in TypeScript and Emdash 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, OpenCode or Emdash?
Choose OpenCode if you want the larger community (208,150 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose Emdash if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.