head to head · open source
OpenWebAnalytics vs Aptabase
OpenWebAnalytics has 2,689 GitHub stars, 488 forks, 115 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Aptabase has 1,815 stars, 138 forks, 59 open issues and last shipped 8 days ago. OpenWebAnalytics leads on adoption by 48% (2,689 vs 1,815 stars). OpenWebAnalytics is written in PHP under GPL-2.0; Aptabase is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0. OpenWebAnalytics has attracted 18% as many forks as stars, Aptabase 8%. OpenWebAnalytics was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (privacy), 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
| OpenWebAnalytics | Aptabase | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 2.7K | ★ 1.8K |
| License | GPL-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | PHP | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-20 | 2026-09-13 |
| Forks | ⑂ 488 | ⑂ 138 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick OpenWebAnalytics if
- You weight community size — 2.7K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches PHP
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Aptabase if
- You want the Aptabase feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and Aptabase fits your workflow better
About OpenWebAnalytics
Open Web Analytics is an open source web analytics server written in PHP and released under the GNU GPL, version 2 or later. It ships the OWA Server together with a first party JavaScript tracking client that can be added to web pages, and it is positioned by its maintainers as an alternative to commercial analytics tools such as Google Analytics. The project lives in the PHP ecosystem and is distributed through its GitHub repository, with a WordPress integration plugin and a PHP SDK maintained alongside it for sites and applications that want tracking wired in without hand rolling the client.…
read the full OpenWebAnalytics overview →
About Aptabase
Aptabase is an open source, privacy first analytics project for mobile, desktop, and web apps. It is written in TypeScript and released under the AGPL 3.0 license. The project describes itself as an alternative to Firebase and Google Analytics for teams that need usage insights without detailed personal identifiers.
read the full Aptabase overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is OpenWebAnalytics or Aptabase more popular?
OpenWebAnalytics has 2,689 GitHub stars and Aptabase has 1,815. OpenWebAnalytics has the larger community by that measure.
Are OpenWebAnalytics and Aptabase free?
Both are open source. OpenWebAnalytics is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Aptabase under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between OpenWebAnalytics and Aptabase?
OpenWebAnalytics is written in PHP and Aptabase 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, OpenWebAnalytics or Aptabase?
Choose OpenWebAnalytics if you want the larger community (2,689 stars) or its GPL-2.0 licence terms. Choose Aptabase if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.