head to head · open source
SmartIR vs matterbridge
SmartIR has 2,860 GitHub stars, 1,252 forks, 199 open issues and last shipped 7 days ago. matterbridge has 1,005 stars, 67 forks, 8 open issues and last shipped 4 days ago. SmartIR leads on adoption by 185% (2,860 vs 1,005 stars). SmartIR is written in Python under MIT; matterbridge is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0. SmartIR has attracted 44% as many forks as stars, matterbridge 7%. matterbridge was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (homeassistant, 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 | matterbridge | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 2.9K | ★ 1.0K |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-05 | 2026-11-08 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.3K | ⑂ 67 |
| 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 matterbridge if
- You want the matterbridge feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and matterbridge 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 matterbridge
Matterbridge Matterbridge is a Matter plugin manager. It creates a Matter device (of type bridge) that can be paired with any ecosystem, such as Apple Home, Google Home, Amazon Alexa, SmartThings, Home Assistant, Gladys Assistant or any other platform supporting Matter. You don't need a hub or a dedicated new machine. No complex setup: just copy paste the installation scripts (available for Docker, Nginx, Linux systemctl, Windows Task Scheduler and macOS launchctl). Matterbridge is lightweight and also runs on slow Linux machines with as little as 512MB of memory. It is fully supported on Linux, macOS, and…
read the full matterbridge overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is SmartIR or matterbridge more popular?
SmartIR has 2,860 GitHub stars and matterbridge has 1,005. SmartIR has the larger community by that measure.
Are SmartIR and matterbridge free?
Both are open source. SmartIR is licensed under MIT and matterbridge under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between SmartIR and matterbridge?
SmartIR is written in Python and matterbridge 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, SmartIR or matterbridge?
Choose SmartIR if you want the larger community (2,860 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose matterbridge if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.