head to head · open source
Paperless-ngx vs Garage
Paperless-ngx has 45,255 GitHub stars, 3,121 forks, 4 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Garage has 4,541 stars, 176 forks, 2 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. Paperless-ngx leads on adoption by 897% (45,255 vs 4,541 stars). Paperless-ngx is written in Python under GPL-3.0; Garage is written in Rust under AGPL-3.0. Paperless-ngx has attracted 7% as many forks as stars, Garage 4%. Paperless-ngx 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
| Paperless-ngx | Garage | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 45K | ★ 4.5K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Python | Rust |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-15 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.1K | ⑂ 176 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Paperless-ngx if
- You weight community size — 45K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Garage if
- You want the Garage feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Rust
- You evaluated both and Garage fits your workflow better
About Paperless-ngx
Paperless ngx is a community supported, GPL 3.0 licensed document management system written in Python that turns physical paperwork into a searchable, indexed online archive, and it is built for individuals, homelab operators and small teams who want to scan, index and archive their documents on infrastructure they control.
read the full Paperless-ngx overview →
About Garage
Garage is an S3 compatible distributed object storage service written in Rust and released under the AGPL 3.0, built for self hosting at small to medium scale where the cluster spans nodes in different physical locations.
read the full Garage overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Paperless-ngx or Garage more popular?
Paperless-ngx has 45,255 GitHub stars and Garage has 4,541. Paperless-ngx has the larger community by that measure.
Are Paperless-ngx and Garage free?
Both are open source. Paperless-ngx is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Garage under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Paperless-ngx and Garage?
Paperless-ngx is written in Python and Garage in Rust. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Paperless-ngx or Garage?
Choose Paperless-ngx if you want the larger community (45,255 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Garage if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.