head to head · open source
parse-server vs lakeFS
parse-server has 21,410 GitHub stars, 4,806 forks, 561 open issues and last shipped 9 days ago. lakeFS has 5,535 stars, 477 forks, 443 open issues and last shipped 5 days ago. parse-server leads on adoption by 287% (21,410 vs 5,535 stars). parse-server is written in JavaScript under Apache-2.0; lakeFS is written in Go under Apache-2.0. parse-server has attracted 22% as many forks as stars, lakeFS 9%. lakeFS 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 | lakeFS | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 21K | ★ 5.5K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | JavaScript | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-13 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 4.8K | ⑂ 477 |
| 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 lakeFS if
- You want the lakeFS 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 lakeFS 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 lakeFS
lakeFS is an open source data version control tool — commonly described as Git for data — that turns object storage into a versioned, Git like repository, and it is built for data engineers, analytics engineers, and data scientists who need repeatable, atomic, and auditable data lake operations.
read the full lakeFS overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is parse-server or lakeFS more popular?
parse-server has 21,410 GitHub stars and lakeFS has 5,535. parse-server has the larger community by that measure.
Are parse-server and lakeFS free?
Both are open source. parse-server is licensed under Apache-2.0 and lakeFS under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between parse-server and lakeFS?
parse-server is written in JavaScript and lakeFS 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, parse-server or lakeFS?
Choose parse-server if you want the larger community (21,410 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose lakeFS if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.