head to head · open source
pwd.sh vs pykeepass
pwd.sh has 1,564 GitHub stars, 135 forks, 0 open issues and last shipped 1 months ago. pykeepass has 511 stars, 103 forks, 42 open issues and last shipped 2 months ago. pwd.sh leads on adoption by 206% (1,564 vs 511 stars). pwd.sh is written in Shell under MIT; pykeepass is written in Python under GPL-3.0. pwd.sh has attracted 9% as many forks as stars, pykeepass 20%. pwd.sh was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (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 | pykeepass | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 1.6K | ★ 511 |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Shell | Python |
| Last push | 2026-08-24 | 2026-08-09 |
| Forks | ⑂ 135 | ⑂ 103 |
| 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 pykeepass if
- You want the pykeepass 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 pykeepass 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 pykeepass
pykeepass is a Python library for reading, writing and automating KeePass .kdbx password databases (KDBX3 and KDBX4) for developers and self hosters who want programmatic access to their credentials.
read the full pykeepass overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is pwd.sh or pykeepass more popular?
pwd.sh has 1,564 GitHub stars and pykeepass has 511. pwd.sh has the larger community by that measure.
Are pwd.sh and pykeepass free?
Both are open source. pwd.sh is licensed under MIT and pykeepass under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between pwd.sh and pykeepass?
pwd.sh is written in Shell and pykeepass 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 pykeepass?
Choose pwd.sh if you want the larger community (1,564 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose pykeepass if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.