head to head · open source
operating-system vs OpenMQTTGateway
operating-system has 7,634 GitHub stars, 1,335 forks, 95 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. OpenMQTTGateway has 4,117 stars, 912 forks, 48 open issues and last shipped yesterday. operating-system leads on adoption by 85% (7,634 vs 4,117 stars). operating-system is written in Python under Apache-2.0; OpenMQTTGateway is written in C++ under GPL-3.0. operating-system has attracted 17% as many forks as stars, OpenMQTTGateway 22%. OpenMQTTGateway was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (home-assistant), 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
| operating-system | OpenMQTTGateway | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 7.6K | ★ 4.1K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Python | C++ |
| Last push | 2026-11-06 | 2026-11-08 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.3K | ⑂ 912 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick operating-system if
- You weight community size — 7.6K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick OpenMQTTGateway if
- You want the OpenMQTTGateway feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You evaluated both and OpenMQTTGateway fits your workflow better
About operating-system
Home Assistant Operating System Home Assistant Operating System (formerly HassOS) is a Linux based operating system optimized to host Home Assistant and its Apps. Home Assistant Operating System uses Docker as its container engine. By default it deploys the Home Assistant Supervisor as a container. Home Assistant Supervisor in turn uses the Docker container engine to control Home Assistant Core and Apps in separate containers. Home Assistant Operating System is not based on a regular Linux distribution like Ubuntu. It is built using Buildroot and it is optimized to run Home Assistant. It targets single board…
read the full operating-system overview →
About OpenMQTTGateway
OpenMQTTGateway aims to unify various technologies and protocols into a single firmware. This reduces the need for multiple physical bridges and streamlines diverse technologies under the widely used MQTT protocol. Sponsors Documentation The documentation is here New to OpenMQTTGateway? Follow the Getting Started guide to flash a board from your browser and see your first sensor data in about 15 minutes. The reference sheet, with the list of all functions, pinouts is here Upload Upload OpenMQTTGateway directly from the upload page (no additional software required) or build your own configuration with PlatformIO…
read the full OpenMQTTGateway overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is operating-system or OpenMQTTGateway more popular?
operating-system has 7,634 GitHub stars and OpenMQTTGateway has 4,117. operating-system has the larger community by that measure.
Are operating-system and OpenMQTTGateway free?
Both are open source. operating-system is licensed under Apache-2.0 and OpenMQTTGateway under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between operating-system and OpenMQTTGateway?
operating-system is written in Python and OpenMQTTGateway in C++. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, operating-system or OpenMQTTGateway?
Choose operating-system if you want the larger community (7,634 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose OpenMQTTGateway if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.