head to head · open source
PairDrop vs OpenCloud
PairDrop has 11,422 GitHub stars, 691 forks, 111 open issues and last shipped 5 months ago. OpenCloud has 6,003 stars, 242 forks, 449 open issues and last shipped yesterday. PairDrop leads on adoption by 90% (11,422 vs 6,003 stars). PairDrop is written in JavaScript under GPL-3.0; OpenCloud is written in Go under Apache-2.0. PairDrop has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, OpenCloud 4%. OpenCloud 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
| PairDrop | OpenCloud | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 11K | ★ 6.0K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | JavaScript | Go |
| Last push | 2026-04-22 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 691 | ⑂ 242 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick PairDrop if
- You weight community size — 11K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick OpenCloud if
- You want the OpenCloud feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and OpenCloud fits your workflow better
About PairDrop
PairDrop is open source JavaScript web app for file sharing. It lives in browser PWA ecosystem, using WebRTC, WebSockets, IndexedDB, Node.js. It is fork of Snapdrop. It is inspired by Apple AirDrop. It is listed as Productivity & Utilities / File Management & Sync. License is GPL 3.0. GitHub metadata lists 11390 stars and 690 forks.
read the full PairDrop overview →
About OpenCloud
OpenCloud is an open source platform for file management, sharing and collaboration, positioned as a self hosted alternative built for digital sovereignty. The project lives in the Productivity & Utilities / File Management & Sync category of the open source ecosystem, and the repository in question is the main repository of the OpenCloud server: it contains the Go codebase for the backend services that the rest of the platform is built on. The server is released under the Apache 2.0 licence, and the wider project is backed by OpenCloud GmbH, with documentation and installation guidance published at opencloud.eu …
read the full OpenCloud overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is PairDrop or OpenCloud more popular?
PairDrop has 11,422 GitHub stars and OpenCloud has 6,003. PairDrop has the larger community by that measure.
Are PairDrop and OpenCloud free?
Both are open source. PairDrop is licensed under GPL-3.0 and OpenCloud under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between PairDrop and OpenCloud?
PairDrop is written in JavaScript and OpenCloud in Go. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, PairDrop or OpenCloud?
Choose PairDrop if you want the larger community (11,422 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose OpenCloud if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.