head to head · open source
readest vs WritingTools
readest has 24,413 GitHub stars, 1,586 forks, 145 open issues and last shipped yesterday. WritingTools has 2,451 stars, 159 forks, 79 open issues and last shipped 1 months ago. readest leads on adoption by 896% (24,413 vs 2,451 stars). readest is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0; WritingTools is written in Swift under GPL-3.0. readest has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, WritingTools 6%. readest 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
| readest | WritingTools | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 24K | ★ 2.5K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Swift |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-08-19 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.6K | ⑂ 159 |
| 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 WritingTools if
- You want the WritingTools feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Swift
- You evaluated both and WritingTools 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 WritingTools
WritingTools is an open source, system wide writing assistant for Windows, Linux, and macOS. It is inspired by Apple Intelligence Writing Tools and uses cloud based or local large language models to proofread, rewrite, summarize, and transform selected text across applications. The project is written in Swift and released under the GPL 3.0 license. The README states it works in nearly any language.
read the full WritingTools overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is readest or WritingTools more popular?
readest has 24,413 GitHub stars and WritingTools has 2,451. readest has the larger community by that measure.
Are readest and WritingTools free?
Both are open source. readest is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and WritingTools under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between readest and WritingTools?
readest is written in TypeScript and WritingTools in Swift. 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 WritingTools?
Choose readest if you want the larger community (24,413 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose WritingTools if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.