head to head · open source
parcel vs erlang.mk
parcel has 44,025 GitHub stars, 2,284 forks, 606 open issues and last shipped 12 days ago. erlang.mk has 587 stars, 237 forks, 41 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. parcel leads on adoption by 7,400% (44,025 vs 587 stars). parcel is written in JavaScript under MIT; erlang.mk is written in Makefile under ISC. parcel has attracted 5% as many forks as stars, erlang.mk 40%. erlang.mk was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (build-tool), 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
| parcel | erlang.mk | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 44K | ★ 587 |
| License | MIT | ISC |
| Written in | JavaScript | Makefile |
| Last push | 2026-09-06 | 2026-09-16 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.3K | ⑂ 237 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick parcel if
- You weight community size — 44K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick erlang.mk if
- You want the erlang.mk feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the ISC license terms
- Your stack matches Makefile
- You evaluated both and erlang.mk fits your workflow better
About parcel
Parcel is a zero configuration build tool for the web, distributed as the parcel package on npm and licensed under MIT. It lives in the JavaScript ecosystem and is written primarily in JavaScript, with its JavaScript compiler implemented in Rust for native performance. The project has been developed for roughly nine years, carries more than 44,000 stars and over 2,200 forks on GitHub, and its documentation is hosted at parceljs.org.
read the full parcel overview →
About erlang.mk
= Erlang.mk A build tool for Erlang that just works. guide] Embrace the power and simplicity of Makefiles. [source,make] PROJECT = webchat DEPS = cowboy dep cowboy commit = 2.8.0 include erlang.mk started] Tested and supported on FreeBSD, OSX] and Get help! server].
read the full erlang.mk overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is parcel or erlang.mk more popular?
parcel has 44,025 GitHub stars and erlang.mk has 587. parcel has the larger community by that measure.
Are parcel and erlang.mk free?
Both are open source. parcel is licensed under MIT and erlang.mk under ISC. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between parcel and erlang.mk?
parcel is written in JavaScript and erlang.mk in Makefile. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, parcel or erlang.mk?
Choose parcel if you want the larger community (44,025 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose erlang.mk if its feature set, stack or ISC licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.