head to head · open source
PayloadsAllTheThings vs Raccoon
PayloadsAllTheThings has 80,968 GitHub stars, 17,378 forks, 36 open issues and last shipped 23 days ago. Raccoon has 4,025 stars, 501 forks, 14 open issues and last shipped 5 months ago. PayloadsAllTheThings leads on adoption by 1,912% (80,968 vs 4,025 stars). PayloadsAllTheThings is written in Python under MIT; Raccoon is written in Python under MIT. PayloadsAllTheThings has attracted 21% as many forks as stars, Raccoon 12%. PayloadsAllTheThings was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (enumeration, hacking), 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
| PayloadsAllTheThings | Raccoon | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 81K | ★ 4.0K |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | Python | Python |
| Last push | 2026-08-27 | 2026-04-21 |
| Forks | ⑂ 17K | ⑂ 501 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick PayloadsAllTheThings if
- You weight community size — 81K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Raccoon if
- You want the Raccoon feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and Raccoon fits your workflow better
About PayloadsAllTheThings
Payloads All The Things is an MIT licensed, community maintained collection of web application security payloads, bypass techniques and pentest methodology notes, written for penetration testers, bug bounty hunters, CTF players and red teamers who need a reference they can copy from during an engagement.
read the full PayloadsAllTheThings overview →
About Raccoon
Raccoon is an open source, MIT licensed offensive security tool written in Python for reconnaissance and information gathering, built for penetration testers, bug bounty hunters, and security analysts who need to map a target's DNS, TLS, network, and web footprint from a single command line.
read the full Raccoon overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is PayloadsAllTheThings or Raccoon more popular?
PayloadsAllTheThings has 80,968 GitHub stars and Raccoon has 4,025. PayloadsAllTheThings has the larger community by that measure.
Are PayloadsAllTheThings and Raccoon free?
Both are open source. PayloadsAllTheThings is licensed under MIT and Raccoon under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between PayloadsAllTheThings and Raccoon?
PayloadsAllTheThings is written in Python and Raccoon 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, PayloadsAllTheThings or Raccoon?
Choose PayloadsAllTheThings if you want the larger community (80,968 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose Raccoon if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.