head to head · open source
raylib vs armory
raylib has 35,186 GitHub stars, 3,338 forks, 16 open issues and last shipped yesterday. armory has 3,350 stars, 356 forks, 398 open issues and last shipped 5 days ago. raylib leads on adoption by 950% (35,186 vs 3,350 stars). raylib is written in C under Zlib; armory is written in C++ under Zlib. raylib has attracted 9% as many forks as stars, armory 11%. raylib was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (game-engine), 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
| raylib | armory | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 35K | ★ 3.4K |
| License | Zlib | Zlib |
| Written in | C | C++ |
| Last push | 2026-10-14 | 2026-10-10 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.3K | ⑂ 356 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick raylib if
- You weight community size — 35K stars and counting
- You want the Zlib license terms
- Your stack matches C
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick armory if
- You want the armory feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Zlib license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You evaluated both and armory fits your workflow better
About raylib
raylib is an open source, Zlib licensed C programming library for building videogames and graphical applications, aimed at programmers who would rather write code directly than work inside a visual game engine editor.
read the full raylib overview →
About armory
Armory is an open source 3D game engine with full Blender integration, aimed at developers who want to build games inside Blender rather than in a separate editor.
read the full armory overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is raylib or armory more popular?
raylib has 35,186 GitHub stars and armory has 3,350. raylib has the larger community by that measure.
Are raylib and armory free?
Both are open source. raylib is licensed under Zlib and armory under Zlib. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between raylib and armory?
raylib is written in C and armory 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, raylib or armory?
Choose raylib if you want the larger community (35,186 stars) or its Zlib licence terms. Choose armory if its feature set, stack or Zlib licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.