head to head · open source
refined-github vs web-ext
refined-github has 32,187 GitHub stars, 1,914 forks, 80 open issues and last shipped yesterday. web-ext has 3,138 stars, 386 forks, 223 open issues and last shipped yesterday. refined-github leads on adoption by 926% (32,187 vs 3,138 stars). refined-github is written in TypeScript under MIT; web-ext is written in JavaScript under MPL-2.0. refined-github has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, web-ext 12%. refined-github was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (browser-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 | web-ext | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 32K | ★ 3.1K |
| License | MIT | MPL-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-19 | 2026-09-19 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.9K | ⑂ 386 |
| 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 web-ext if
- You want the web-ext feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MPL-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and web-ext 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 web-ext
web ext is a command line tool for building, running, and testing WebExtensions. It lives in the JavaScript and npm ecosystem, and it targets browser add ons that use the WebExtensions API. The project is licensed under MPL 2.0 and is distributed through npm, with an unofficial Homebrew formula maintained by the community. It provides one command line interface for common extension development tasks.
read the full web-ext overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is refined-github or web-ext more popular?
refined-github has 32,187 GitHub stars and web-ext has 3,138. refined-github has the larger community by that measure.
Are refined-github and web-ext free?
Both are open source. refined-github is licensed under MIT and web-ext under MPL-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between refined-github and web-ext?
refined-github is written in TypeScript and web-ext 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, refined-github or web-ext?
Choose refined-github if you want the larger community (32,187 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose web-ext if its feature set, stack or MPL-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.