head to head · open source
Paperless-ngx vs Zotero
Paperless-ngx has 47,590 GitHub stars, 3,330 forks, 4 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Zotero has 15,838 stars, 1,173 forks, 1,600 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Paperless-ngx leads on adoption by 200% (47,590 vs 15,838 stars). Paperless-ngx is written in Python under GPL-3.0; Zotero is written in JavaScript under a custom or non-standard licence. Paperless-ngx has attracted 7% as many forks as stars, Zotero 7%. Zotero 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.
← all 20902 open source comparisons
Side by side
| Paperless-ngx | Zotero | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 48K | ★ 16K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Custom / other |
| Written in | Python | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.3K | ⑂ 1.2K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Paperless-ngx if
- You weight community size — 48K 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 Zotero if
- You want the Zotero feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and Zotero fits your workflow better
About Paperless-ngx
Paperless ngx Paperless ngx is a document management system that transforms your physical documents into a searchable online archive so you can keep, well, less paper . Paperless ngx is the official successor to the original Paperless & Paperless ng projects and is designed to distribute the responsibility of advancing and supporting the project among a team of people. Consider joining us! Thanks to the generous folks at DigitalOcean, a demo is available at demo.paperless ngx.com using login demo / demo . Note: demo content is reset frequently and confidential information should not be uploaded. Features Getting…
read the full Paperless-ngx overview →
About Zotero
Zotero ====== Zotero is a free, easy to use tool to help you collect, organize, cite, and share your research sources. Please post feature requests or bug reports to the Zotero Forums. If you're having trouble with Zotero, see Getting Help. For more information on how to use this source code, see the Zotero documentation.
read the full Zotero overview →
More in Infrastructure & Operations
Related comparisons
More Storage Solutions projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the Storage Solutions field.
Frequently asked questions
Is Paperless-ngx or Zotero more popular?
Paperless-ngx has 47,590 GitHub stars and Zotero has 15,838. Paperless-ngx has the larger community by that measure.
Are Paperless-ngx and Zotero free?
Both are open source. Paperless-ngx is licensed under GPL-3.0, and Zotero has no licence declared in this registry. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Paperless-ngx and Zotero?
Paperless-ngx is written in Python and Zotero in JavaScript. 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 Zotero?
Choose Paperless-ngx if you want the larger community (47,590 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Zotero if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.