head to head · open source
Puter vs Phase
Puter has 43,557 GitHub stars, 4,062 forks, 19 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Phase has 923 stars, 70 forks, 78 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Puter leads on adoption by 4,619% (43,557 vs 923 stars). Puter is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0; Phase is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence. Puter has attracted 9% as many forks as stars, Phase 8%. Puter was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (open-source), 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
| Puter | Phase | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 44K | ★ 923 |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Custom / other |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-16 |
| Forks | ⑂ 4.1K | ⑂ 70 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Puter if
- You weight community size — 44K stars and counting
- You want the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Phase if
- You want the Phase feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and Phase fits your workflow better
About Puter
Puter is an open source, self hostable internet computer that delivers a full desktop environment running directly in a web browser. It functions as a cloud based operating system, integrating file storage, applications, and developer tooling into a single cohesive platform. The project lives in the browser based desktop and cloud infrastructure ecosystem, positioning itself as a free and open alternative to proprietary cloud desktop services.
read the full Puter overview →
About Phase
Phase is an open source secrets management platform, written in TypeScript, that lets fast moving engineering teams secure, deploy, and manage application secrets and environment variables from development through to production.
read the full Phase overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Puter or Phase more popular?
Puter has 43,557 GitHub stars and Phase has 923. Puter has the larger community by that measure.
Are Puter and Phase free?
Both are open source. Puter is licensed under AGPL-3.0, and Phase has no licence declared in this registry. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Puter and Phase?
Puter is written in TypeScript and Phase in TypeScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Puter or Phase?
Choose Puter if you want the larger community (43,557 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Phase if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.