head to head · open source
pwd.sh vs pass-import
pwd.sh has 1,563 GitHub stars, 135 forks, 0 open issues and last shipped 1 months ago. pass-import has 917 stars, 98 forks, 22 open issues and last shipped 4 months ago. pwd.sh leads on adoption by 70% (1,563 vs 917 stars). pwd.sh is written in Shell under MIT; pass-import is written in Python under GPL-3.0. pwd.sh has attracted 9% as many forks as stars, pass-import 11%. pwd.sh was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (password, password-manager), 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
| pwd.sh | pass-import | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 1.6K | ★ 917 |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Shell | Python |
| Last push | 2026-08-24 | 2026-06-07 |
| Forks | ⑂ 135 | ⑂ 98 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick pwd.sh if
- You weight community size — 1.6K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Shell
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick pass-import if
- You want the pass-import feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and pass-import fits your workflow better
About pwd.sh
pwd.sh is a Bash script that manages text secrets such as passwords by storing each one in a GnuPG symmetric encrypted file, and it is for people who work in a terminal and prefer to keep their own encrypted store rather than hand it to a hosted password service.
read the full pwd.sh overview →
About pass-import
pass import is a GPL 3.0 Python extension for pass, the file based Unix password manager, that imports existing password databases from 63 different password managers into a pass password store and can also export credentials to other managers through its companion pimport script.
read the full pass-import overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is pwd.sh or pass-import more popular?
pwd.sh has 1,563 GitHub stars and pass-import has 917. pwd.sh has the larger community by that measure.
Are pwd.sh and pass-import free?
Both are open source. pwd.sh is licensed under MIT and pass-import under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between pwd.sh and pass-import?
pwd.sh is written in Shell and pass-import 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, pwd.sh or pass-import?
Choose pwd.sh if you want the larger community (1,563 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose pass-import if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.