head to head · open source
shynet vs Aptabase
shynet has 3,156 GitHub stars, 208 forks, 63 open issues and last shipped 6 months ago. Aptabase has 1,815 stars, 138 forks, 59 open issues and last shipped 7 days ago. shynet leads on adoption by 74% (3,156 vs 1,815 stars). shynet is written in Python under Apache-2.0; Aptabase is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0. shynet has attracted 7% as many forks as stars, Aptabase 8%. Aptabase was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (analytics, privacy), 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
| shynet | Aptabase | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 3.2K | ★ 1.8K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Python | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-03-15 | 2026-09-13 |
| Forks | ⑂ 208 | ⑂ 138 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick shynet if
- You weight community size — 3.2K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Aptabase if
- You want the Aptabase feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and Aptabase fits your workflow better
About shynet
Shynet is an open source web analytics application written in Python and built with Django. It lives in the self hosted web and product analytics ecosystem, where operators collect visit data on their own infrastructure instead of sending it to a third party service. The project is released under the Apache 2.0 license and aims to provide detailed analytics without cookies or required JavaScript.
read the full shynet overview →
About Aptabase
Aptabase is an open source, privacy first analytics project for mobile, desktop, and web apps. It is written in TypeScript and released under the AGPL 3.0 license. The project describes itself as an alternative to Firebase and Google Analytics for teams that need usage insights without detailed personal identifiers.
read the full Aptabase overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is shynet or Aptabase more popular?
shynet has 3,156 GitHub stars and Aptabase has 1,815. shynet has the larger community by that measure.
Are shynet and Aptabase free?
Both are open source. shynet is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Aptabase under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between shynet and Aptabase?
shynet is written in Python and Aptabase 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, shynet or Aptabase?
Choose shynet if you want the larger community (3,156 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose Aptabase if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.