head to head · open source
rembg vs RawTherapee
rembg has 25,325 GitHub stars, 2,468 forks, 3 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. RawTherapee has 4,272 stars, 429 forks, 1,028 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. rembg leads on adoption by 493% (25,325 vs 4,272 stars). rembg is written in Python under MIT; RawTherapee is written in C++ under GPL-3.0. rembg has attracted 10% as many forks as stars, RawTherapee 10%. rembg 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
| rembg | RawTherapee | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 25K | ★ 4.3K |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Python | C++ |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-01 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.5K | ⑂ 429 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick rembg if
- You weight community size — 25K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick RawTherapee if
- You want the RawTherapee feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You evaluated both and RawTherapee fits your workflow better
About rembg
Rembg is a tool to remove image backgrounds. It can be used as a CLI, Python library, HTTP server, or Docker container. Sponsors PhotoRoom Remove Background API Fast and accurate background remover API If this project has helped you, please consider making a donation. Requirements bash pip install "rembg[gpu]" for library pip install "rembg[gpu,cli]" for library + cli bash pip install "rembg[rocm]" for library pip install "rembg[rocm,cli]" for library + cli shell rembg help shell rembg help shell curl s rembg i output.png shell rembg i path/to/input.png path/to/output.png shell rembg i path/to/input.png →…
read the full rembg overview →
About RawTherapee
RawTherapee is a powerful, cross platform raw photo processing program, released as libre software under the GNU General Public License Version 3. It is written mostly in C++ using a GTK+ front end. It uses a patched version of dcraw for reading raw files, with an in house solution which adds the highest quality support for certain camera models unsupported by dcraw and enhances the accuracy of certain raw files already supported by dcraw. It is notable for the advanced control it gives the user over the demosaicing and development process. Target Audience RawTherapee is designed for developing raw files from a…
read the full RawTherapee overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is rembg or RawTherapee more popular?
rembg has 25,325 GitHub stars and RawTherapee has 4,272. rembg has the larger community by that measure.
Are rembg and RawTherapee free?
Both are open source. rembg is licensed under MIT and RawTherapee under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between rembg and RawTherapee?
rembg is written in Python and RawTherapee 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, rembg or RawTherapee?
Choose rembg if you want the larger community (25,325 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose RawTherapee if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.