head to head · open source
Puter vs Wire
Puter has 43,557 GitHub stars, 4,062 forks, 19 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Wire has 2,549 stars, 180 forks, 173 open issues and last shipped 9 months ago. Puter leads on adoption by 1,609% (43,557 vs 2,549 stars). Puter is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0; Wire is written in various languages under GPL-3.0. Puter has attracted 9% as many forks as stars, Wire 7%. Puter 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
| Puter | Wire | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 44K | ★ 2.5K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | — |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-01-05 |
| Forks | ⑂ 4.1K | ⑂ 180 |
| 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 Wire if
- You want the Wire feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- You evaluated both and Wire 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 Wire
Wire is an open source secure collaboration platform whose GitHub overview repository gathers code for clients, encryption, audio/video/signaling, server components, and protocol definitions. It lives in the security and privacy ecosystem, specifically data security and privacy.
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Frequently asked questions
Is Puter or Wire more popular?
Puter has 43,557 GitHub stars and Wire has 2,549. Puter has the larger community by that measure.
Are Puter and Wire free?
Both are open source. Puter is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Wire under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Puter and Wire?
Puter is written in TypeScript and Wire in various languages. 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 Wire?
Choose Puter if you want the larger community (43,557 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Wire if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.