head to head · open source
PocketBase vs tinyfilemanager
PocketBase has 61,103 GitHub stars, 3,694 forks, 19 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. tinyfilemanager has 5,980 stars, 1,813 forks, 308 open issues and last shipped 2 months ago. PocketBase leads on adoption by 922% (61,103 vs 5,980 stars). PocketBase is written in Go under MIT; tinyfilemanager is written in PHP under GPL-3.0. PocketBase has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, tinyfilemanager 30%. PocketBase 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.
← all 20902 open source comparisons
Side by side
| PocketBase | tinyfilemanager | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 61K | ★ 6.0K |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Go | PHP |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-07-20 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.7K | ⑂ 1.8K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick PocketBase if
- You weight community size — 61K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick tinyfilemanager if
- You want the tinyfilemanager feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches PHP
- You evaluated both and tinyfilemanager fits your workflow better
About PocketBase
PocketBase is an open source backend framework written in Go that bundles a SQLite database, authentication, file storage, admin dashboard, and REST API into a single executable file. It lives in the Go ecosystem and targets developers who want a lightweight, self contained backend without managing separate services like PostgreSQL, Redis, or a separate auth server.
read the full PocketBase overview →
About tinyfilemanager
Tiny File Manager is a single file, zero configuration PHP web application that gives you a browser based file manager, uploader, archive tool and code editor from one tinyfilemanager.php script dropped into any web directory.
read the full tinyfilemanager overview →
More in Developer Tools
Related comparisons
More Frameworks & Platforms projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the Frameworks & Platforms field.
Frequently asked questions
Is PocketBase or tinyfilemanager more popular?
PocketBase has 61,103 GitHub stars and tinyfilemanager has 5,980. PocketBase has the larger community by that measure.
Are PocketBase and tinyfilemanager free?
Both are open source. PocketBase is licensed under MIT and tinyfilemanager under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between PocketBase and tinyfilemanager?
PocketBase is written in Go and tinyfilemanager in PHP. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, PocketBase or tinyfilemanager?
Choose PocketBase if you want the larger community (61,103 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose tinyfilemanager if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.