head to head · open source
syncthing vs Files
syncthing has 89,310 GitHub stars, 5,518 forks, 388 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Files has 45,904 stars, 2,954 forks, 458 open issues and last shipped yesterday. syncthing leads on adoption by 95% (89,310 vs 45,904 stars). syncthing is written in Go under MPL-2.0; Files is written in C# under MIT. syncthing has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, Files 6%. Files 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
| syncthing | Files | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 89K | ★ 46K |
| License | MPL-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Go | C# |
| Last push | 2026-10-10 | 2026-10-11 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.5K | ⑂ 3.0K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick syncthing if
- You weight community size — 89K stars and counting
- You want the MPL-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Files if
- You want the Files feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches C#
- You evaluated both and Files fits your workflow better
About syncthing
Syncthing is an open source continuous file synchronization program written in Go that keeps files identical across two or more computers, aimed at individual users who want to sync their own data without a third party service.
read the full syncthing overview →
About Files
Files is a modern, MIT licensed file manager for Windows, written in C and maintained by an open source community, for Windows users who want a customizable, actively developed alternative for organising files and folders.
read the full Files overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is syncthing or Files more popular?
syncthing has 89,310 GitHub stars and Files has 45,904. syncthing has the larger community by that measure.
Are syncthing and Files free?
Both are open source. syncthing is licensed under MPL-2.0 and Files under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between syncthing and Files?
syncthing is written in Go and Files 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, syncthing or Files?
Choose syncthing if you want the larger community (89,310 stars) or its MPL-2.0 licence terms. Choose Files if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.