head to head · open source
Payload vs luban-h5
Payload has 44,793 GitHub stars, 4,164 forks, 1,127 open issues and last shipped yesterday. luban-h5 has 6,240 stars, 1,280 forks, 109 open issues and last shipped 9 months ago. Payload leads on adoption by 618% (44,793 vs 6,240 stars). Payload is written in TypeScript under MIT; luban-h5 is written in JavaScript under GPL-3.0. Payload has attracted 9% as many forks as stars, luban-h5 21%. Payload 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
| Payload | luban-h5 | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 45K | ★ 6.2K |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-01-03 |
| Forks | ⑂ 4.2K | ⑂ 1.3K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Payload if
- You weight community size — 45K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick luban-h5 if
- You want the luban-h5 feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and luban-h5 fits your workflow better
About Payload
Payload is an open source, MIT licensed headless CMS and fullstack framework, written in TypeScript and built to run natively inside a Next.js /app folder, aimed at developers who want a TypeScript backend and admin panel without signing up for another SaaS.
read the full Payload overview →
About luban-h5
Luban H5 is an open source, GPL 3.0 licensed drag and drop builder that generates mobile H5 pages, built on Vue 2.0 and described by its maintainers as a mini Webflow for mobile pages, for developers and teams who want to self host the design and publishing workflow that hosted platforms such as Eqxiu, Maka, and Baidu H5 provide.
read the full luban-h5 overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Payload or luban-h5 more popular?
Payload has 44,793 GitHub stars and luban-h5 has 6,240. Payload has the larger community by that measure.
Are Payload and luban-h5 free?
Both are open source. Payload is licensed under MIT and luban-h5 under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Payload and luban-h5?
Payload is written in TypeScript and luban-h5 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, Payload or luban-h5?
Choose Payload if you want the larger community (44,793 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose luban-h5 if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.