head to head · open source
OpenCode vs Emdash
OpenCode has 224,079 GitHub stars, 30,135 forks, 5,727 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Emdash has 6,154 stars, 658 forks, 95 open issues and last shipped yesterday. OpenCode leads on adoption by 3,541% (224,079 vs 6,154 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 11%. 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 | ★ 224K | ★ 6.2K |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 30K | ⑂ 658 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick OpenCode if
- You weight community size — 224K 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
The open source AI coding agent. English 简体中文 繁體中文 한국어 Deutsch Español Français Italiano Dansk 日本語 Polski Русский Bosanski العربية Norsk Português (Brasil) ไทย Türkçe Українська বাংলা Ελληνικά Tiếng Việt Installation [!TIP] Remove versions older than 0.1.x before installing. Desktop App (BETA) OpenCode is also available as a desktop application. Download directly from the releases page or opencode.ai/download. Installation Directory The install script respects the following priority order for the installation path: 1. $OPENCODE INSTALL DIR Custom installation directory 2. $XDG BIN DIR XDG Base Directory…
read the full OpenCode overview →
About Emdash
Download · Docs · Releases · Discord · Contributing Emdash is a desktop app for running AI coding agents in parallel. Each task runs in its own Git worktree, so you can explore multiple fixes or features at once, review the diffs, and merge what works. It works with local projects and remote machines over SSH. Bring the CLI agents you already use: Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode, Amp, and more. What You Can Do Run multiple coding agents at once without juggling terminals. Keep every agent isolated in its own Git worktree and branch. Send issues and tickets from Linear, GitHub, Jira, GitLab, Asana, Featurebase…
read the full Emdash overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is OpenCode or Emdash more popular?
OpenCode has 224,079 GitHub stars and Emdash has 6,154. 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 (224,079 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose Emdash if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.