head to head · open source
refined-github vs lightning-browser-extension
refined-github has 32,187 GitHub stars, 1,914 forks, 80 open issues and last shipped yesterday. lightning-browser-extension has 584 stars, 226 forks, 237 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. refined-github leads on adoption by 5,411% (32,187 vs 584 stars). refined-github is written in TypeScript under MIT; lightning-browser-extension is written in TypeScript under MIT. refined-github has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, lightning-browser-extension 39%. refined-github was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (browser-extension, chrome-extension), 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
| refined-github | lightning-browser-extension | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 32K | ★ 584 |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-19 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.9K | ⑂ 226 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick refined-github if
- You weight community size — 32K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick lightning-browser-extension if
- You want the lightning-browser-extension feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and lightning-browser-extension fits your workflow better
About refined-github
Refined GitHub is an MIT licensed browser extension written in TypeScript that simplifies the GitHub interface and adds useful features, built for developers and teams who spend their working day inside GitHub and want the small missing conveniences fixed without waiting for the platform itself to change.
read the full refined-github overview →
About lightning-browser-extension
The Alby lightning browser extension is an open source, MIT licensed Bitcoin Lightning browser extension that exposes a WebLN wallet interface to multiple Lightning nodes and acts as a key signer for Nostr, Liquid and onchain use, built for people who want Lightning payments and authentication to happen inside an ordinary web browser.
read the full lightning-browser-extension overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is refined-github or lightning-browser-extension more popular?
refined-github has 32,187 GitHub stars and lightning-browser-extension has 584. refined-github has the larger community by that measure.
Are refined-github and lightning-browser-extension free?
Both are open source. refined-github is licensed under MIT and lightning-browser-extension under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between refined-github and lightning-browser-extension?
refined-github is written in TypeScript and lightning-browser-extension in TypeScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, refined-github or lightning-browser-extension?
Choose refined-github if you want the larger community (32,187 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose lightning-browser-extension if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.