head to head · open source
Seafile vs PairDrop
Seafile has 15,254 GitHub stars, 1,677 forks, 94 open issues and last shipped 21 days ago. PairDrop has 11,422 stars, 691 forks, 111 open issues and last shipped 5 months ago. Seafile leads on adoption by 34% (15,254 vs 11,422 stars). Seafile is written in C under a custom or non-standard licence; PairDrop is written in JavaScript under GPL-3.0. Seafile has attracted 11% as many forks as stars, PairDrop 6%. Seafile was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (file-sharing), 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
| Seafile | PairDrop | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 15K | ★ 11K |
| License | Custom / other | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | C | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2026-08-28 | 2026-04-22 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.7K | ⑂ 691 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Seafile if
- You weight community size — 15K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches C
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick PairDrop if
- You want the PairDrop feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and PairDrop fits your workflow better
About Seafile
Seafile is an open source cloud storage system written in C and positioned as a self hosted alternative to Dropbox and Google Drive. It organizes files into libraries, each of which can be synced separately, encrypted with a user chosen password, and shared between users or groups. The project lives in the self hosted file sync and document management ecosystem, where it combines storage, collaboration, knowledge management, and metadata features.
read the full Seafile overview →
About PairDrop
PairDrop is open source JavaScript web app for file sharing. It lives in browser PWA ecosystem, using WebRTC, WebSockets, IndexedDB, Node.js. It is fork of Snapdrop. It is inspired by Apple AirDrop. It is listed as Productivity & Utilities / File Management & Sync. License is GPL 3.0. GitHub metadata lists 11390 stars and 690 forks.
read the full PairDrop overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Seafile or PairDrop more popular?
Seafile has 15,254 GitHub stars and PairDrop has 11,422. Seafile has the larger community by that measure.
Are Seafile and PairDrop free?
Both are open source. Seafile has no licence declared in this registry, and PairDrop is licensed under GPL-3.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Seafile and PairDrop?
Seafile is written in C and PairDrop 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, Seafile or PairDrop?
Choose Seafile if you want the larger community (15,254 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose PairDrop if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.