head to head · open source
PayloadsAllTheThings vs WhatWeb
PayloadsAllTheThings has 82,508 GitHub stars, 17,570 forks, 36 open issues and last shipped 11 days ago. WhatWeb has 6,995 stars, 1,020 forks, 51 open issues and last shipped 7 months ago. PayloadsAllTheThings leads on adoption by 1,080% (82,508 vs 6,995 stars). PayloadsAllTheThings is written in Python under MIT; WhatWeb is written in Ruby under GPL-2.0. PayloadsAllTheThings has attracted 21% as many forks as stars, WhatWeb 15%. PayloadsAllTheThings was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 3 topic tags (hacking, penetration-testing, pentest), 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 | WhatWeb | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 83K | ★ 7.0K |
| License | MIT | GPL-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | Ruby |
| Last push | 2026-10-30 | 2026-04-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 18K | ⑂ 1.0K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick PayloadsAllTheThings if
- You weight community size — 83K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick WhatWeb if
- You want the WhatWeb feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Ruby
- You evaluated both and WhatWeb fits your workflow better
About PayloadsAllTheThings
Payloads All The Things A list of useful payloads and bypasses for Web Application Security. Feel free to improve with your payloads and techniques! You can also contribute with a :beers: IRL, or using the sponsor button. An alternative display version is available at PayloadsAllTheThingsWeb. :book: Documentation Every section contains the following files, you can use the template vuln folder to create a new chapter: README.md vulnerability description and how to exploit it, including several payloads Intruder a set of files to give to Burp Intruder Images pictures for the README.md Files some files referenced…
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About WhatWeb
WhatWeb Next generation web scanner Developed by Andrew Horton urbanadventurer and Brendan Coles bcoles Latest Release: v0.6.4. April 3, 2026 License: GPLv2 This product is subject to the terms detailed in the license agreement. For more information about WhatWeb visit Wiki: If you have any questions, comments or concerns regarding WhatWeb, please consult the documentation prior to contacting one of the developers. Your feedback is always welcome. Contents About WhatWeb Example Usage Usage Logging & Output Plugins Aggression Performance & Stability Optional Dependencies Writing Plugins Updates & Additional…
read the full WhatWeb overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is PayloadsAllTheThings or WhatWeb more popular?
PayloadsAllTheThings has 82,508 GitHub stars and WhatWeb has 6,995. PayloadsAllTheThings has the larger community by that measure.
Are PayloadsAllTheThings and WhatWeb free?
Both are open source. PayloadsAllTheThings is licensed under MIT and WhatWeb under GPL-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between PayloadsAllTheThings and WhatWeb?
PayloadsAllTheThings is written in Python and WhatWeb in Ruby. 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 WhatWeb?
Choose PayloadsAllTheThings if you want the larger community (82,508 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose WhatWeb if its feature set, stack or GPL-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.