head to head · open source
SmartIR vs libretiny
SmartIR has 2,861 GitHub stars, 1,252 forks, 199 open issues and last shipped 5 days ago. libretiny has 552 stars, 127 forks, 124 open issues and last shipped 19 days ago. SmartIR leads on adoption by 418% (2,861 vs 552 stars). SmartIR is written in Python under MIT; libretiny is written in C under MIT. SmartIR has attracted 44% as many forks as stars, libretiny 23%. SmartIR was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (esphome, iot), 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
| SmartIR | libretiny | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 2.9K | ★ 552 |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | Python | C |
| Last push | 2026-11-05 | 2026-10-22 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.3K | ⑂ 127 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick SmartIR if
- You weight community size — 2.9K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick libretiny if
- You want the libretiny feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches C
- You evaluated both and libretiny fits your workflow better
About SmartIR
⚠️ Warning You are free to fork, modify, and use the code in this repository in accordance with the applicable open source license. However, the name "SmartIR" must not be used in any capacity , especially for promoting, rebranding, or distributing your own fork or derivative works. Please respect this guideline to preserve the original project's identity. Overview SmartIR is a custom integration for controlling climate devices , media players , fans and lights via infrared controllers. SmartIR currently supports the following controllers: Broadlink Xiaomi IR Remote (ChuangmiIr) LOOK.in Remote ESPHome User…
read the full SmartIR overview →
About libretiny
LibreTiny (formerly LibreTuya) PlatformIO development platform for BK7231, RTL8710 and LN882H IoT chips. The main goal of this project is to provide a usable build environment for IoT developers. While also providing vendor SDKs as PlatformIO cores, the project focuses on developing working Arduino compatible cores for supported families. The cores are inspired by Espressif's official core for ESP32, which should make it easier to port/run existing ESP apps on less common, unsupported IoT modules. There's an ESPHome port based on LibreTiny, which supports BK7231 and RTL8710B chips. Note: this project is work in…
read the full libretiny overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is SmartIR or libretiny more popular?
SmartIR has 2,861 GitHub stars and libretiny has 552. SmartIR has the larger community by that measure.
Are SmartIR and libretiny free?
Both are open source. SmartIR is licensed under MIT and libretiny under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between SmartIR and libretiny?
SmartIR is written in Python and libretiny 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, SmartIR or libretiny?
Choose SmartIR if you want the larger community (2,861 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose libretiny if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.