head to head · open source
rtk vs Synara
rtk has 85,327 GitHub stars, 5,462 forks, 1,642 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Synara has 2,162 stars, 326 forks, 317 open issues and last shipped yesterday. rtk leads on adoption by 3,847% (85,327 vs 2,162 stars). rtk is written in Rust under Apache-2.0; Synara is written in TypeScript under MIT. rtk has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, Synara 15%. Synara 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
| rtk | Synara | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 85K | ★ 2.2K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Rust | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.5K | ⑂ 326 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick rtk if
- You weight community size — 85K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Rust
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Synara if
- You want the Synara feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and Synara fits your workflow better
About rtk
High performance CLI proxy that cuts up to 90% of the bash output your agent reads Website • Install • Troubleshooting • Architecture • Discord English • Francais • 中文 • 日本語 • 한국어 • Espanol • Português rtk filters and compresses command outputs before they reach your LLM context. Single Rust binary, 100+ supported commands, Full explanation: How RTK Savings Work Installation Homebrew (recommended) winget (Windows) Easiest way to install on Windows — one command, no PATH setup needed: Quick Install (Linux/macOS) Installs to /.local/bin . Add to PATH if needed…
About Synara
Synara A focused workspace for coding agents. Projects, provider sessions, execution surfaces, and review tools in one local first desktop application. Download · Website · Documentation · MCP integration · Report an issue Table of contents [!NOTE] Synara is early stage software. APIs and interface details remain under active development. Capabilities 1. Projects, threads, and context Organize work around projects and threads. Projects define the workspace; threads preserve the task specific conversation, state, files, and history. Project aware navigation and conversations Provider and model selection per task…
read the full Synara overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is rtk or Synara more popular?
rtk has 85,327 GitHub stars and Synara has 2,162. rtk has the larger community by that measure.
Are rtk and Synara free?
Both are open source. rtk is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Synara under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between rtk and Synara?
rtk is written in Rust and Synara 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, rtk or Synara?
Choose rtk if you want the larger community (85,327 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose Synara if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.