head to head · open source
readest vs foliate-js
readest has 24,413 GitHub stars, 1,586 forks, 145 open issues and last shipped yesterday. foliate-js has 1,112 stars, 265 forks, 61 open issues and last shipped 5 months ago. readest leads on adoption by 2,095% (24,413 vs 1,112 stars). readest is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0; foliate-js is written in JavaScript under MIT. readest has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, foliate-js 24%. readest was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 5 topic tags (ebook, ebook-reader, epub, mobi), 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
| readest | foliate-js | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 24K | ★ 1.1K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Written in | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-05-01 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.6K | ⑂ 265 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick readest if
- You weight community size — 24K 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 foliate-js if
- You want the foliate-js feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and foliate-js fits your workflow better
About readest
Readest is an open source, cross platform ebook reader built with Next.js 16 and Tauri v2 for readers who want one modern library across macOS, Windows, Linux, Android, iOS, and the web.
read the full readest overview →
About foliate-js
foliate js is a pure JavaScript library for rendering e books directly in the browser, built for developers who want to embed a reader in a web application without a backend conversion step or a native rendering stack.
read the full foliate-js overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is readest or foliate-js more popular?
readest has 24,413 GitHub stars and foliate-js has 1,112. readest has the larger community by that measure.
Are readest and foliate-js free?
Both are open source. readest is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and foliate-js under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between readest and foliate-js?
readest is written in TypeScript and foliate-js in JavaScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, readest or foliate-js?
Choose readest if you want the larger community (24,413 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose foliate-js if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.