head to head · open source
parse-server vs bigfunctions
parse-server has 21,409 GitHub stars, 4,807 forks, 561 open issues and last shipped 6 days ago. bigfunctions has 759 stars, 70 forks, 31 open issues and last shipped 27 days ago. parse-server leads on adoption by 2,721% (21,409 vs 759 stars). parse-server is written in JavaScript under Apache-2.0; bigfunctions is written in Python under MIT. parse-server has attracted 22% as many forks as stars, bigfunctions 9%. parse-server 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
| parse-server | bigfunctions | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 21K | ★ 759 |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | JavaScript | Python |
| Last push | 2026-09-13 | 2026-08-23 |
| Forks | ⑂ 4.8K | ⑂ 70 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick parse-server if
- You weight community size — 21K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick bigfunctions if
- You want the bigfunctions feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and bigfunctions fits your workflow better
About parse-server
Parse Server is an open source backend, built for Node.js and the Express web application framework, that can be deployed to any infrastructure able to run Node.js and that serves applications written against the Parse Platform.
read the full parse-server overview →
About bigfunctions
BigFunctions is an open source Python framework, released under the MIT licence, for building a governed catalog of BigQuery functions — packaged with a community library of more than 150 functions that can be called directly or redeployed — and it is aimed at data engineers, analysts, and teams working inside Google BigQuery.
read the full bigfunctions overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is parse-server or bigfunctions more popular?
parse-server has 21,409 GitHub stars and bigfunctions has 759. parse-server has the larger community by that measure.
Are parse-server and bigfunctions free?
Both are open source. parse-server is licensed under Apache-2.0 and bigfunctions under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between parse-server and bigfunctions?
parse-server is written in JavaScript and bigfunctions in Python. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, parse-server or bigfunctions?
Choose parse-server if you want the larger community (21,409 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose bigfunctions if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.