head to head · open source
photocraft vs Kdenlive
photocraft has 76,172 GitHub stars, 13,501 forks, 1,208 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Kdenlive has 6,038 stars, 556 forks, 0 open issues and last shipped yesterday. photocraft leads on adoption by 1,162% (76,172 vs 6,038 stars). photocraft is written in Rust under Apache-2.0; Kdenlive is written in C++ under GPL-3.0. photocraft has attracted 18% as many forks as stars, Kdenlive 9%. photocraft 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
| photocraft | Kdenlive | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 76K | ★ 6.0K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Rust | C++ |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 14K | ⑂ 556 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick photocraft if
- You weight community size — 76K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Rust
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Kdenlive if
- You want the Kdenlive feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You evaluated both and Kdenlive fits your workflow better
About photocraft
PhotoCraft Image editing; an open source, clean room reimplementation of Adobe Photoshop, rebuilt in pure Rust. Layers, masks, adjustment layers, layer styles, type, vectors, brushes and real PSD files, in a native app written entirely in Rust. Open source, offline, and yours. PhotoCraft on getartcraft.com · ArtCraft · All Crafting Apps A caption card with a drop shadow, live type, and Vibrance and Curves adjustment layers, with the Curves editor open. The Great Wave off Kanagawa , Katsushika Hokusai, c. 1831 [!NOTE] ArtCraft is a community of artists from all walks of life. Digital, generative, music, games…
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About Kdenlive
Kdenlive Kdenlive is a powerful, free and open source video editor that brings professional grade video editing capabilities to everyone. Whether you're creating a simple family video or working on a complex project, Kdenlive provides the tools you need to bring your vision to life. For more information about Kdenlive's features, tutorials, and community, please visit our official website. There you can also find downloads for both stable releases and experimental daily builds for Kdenlive. Contributing to Kdenlive Kdenlive is a community driven project, and we welcome contributions from everyone! There are many…
read the full Kdenlive overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is photocraft or Kdenlive more popular?
photocraft has 76,172 GitHub stars and Kdenlive has 6,038. photocraft has the larger community by that measure.
Are photocraft and Kdenlive free?
Both are open source. photocraft is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Kdenlive under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between photocraft and Kdenlive?
photocraft is written in Rust and Kdenlive in C++. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, photocraft or Kdenlive?
Choose photocraft if you want the larger community (76,172 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose Kdenlive if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.