head to head · open source
typeorm vs algernon
typeorm has 36,665 GitHub stars, 6,690 forks, 646 open issues and last shipped 7 days ago. algernon has 3,032 stars, 150 forks, 19 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. typeorm leads on adoption by 1,109% (36,665 vs 3,032 stars). typeorm is written in TypeScript under MIT; algernon is written in JavaScript under BSD-3-Clause. typeorm has attracted 18% as many forks as stars, algernon 5%. algernon was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (mysql), 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
| typeorm | algernon | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 37K | ★ 3.0K |
| License | MIT | BSD-3-Clause |
| Written in | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2026-10-29 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 6.7K | ⑂ 150 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick typeorm if
- You weight community size — 37K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick algernon if
- You want the algernon feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the BSD-3-Clause license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and algernon fits your workflow better
About typeorm
TypeORM is an ORM that can run in Node.js, Browser, Cordova, Ionic, React Native, NativeScript, Expo, and Electron platforms and can be used with TypeScript and JavaScript (ES2023). Its goal is to always support the latest JavaScript features and provide additional features that help you to develop any kind of application that uses databases from small applications with a few tables to large scale enterprise applications with multiple databases. TypeORM supports more databases than any other JS/TS ORM: Google Spanner, Microsoft SqlServer, MySQL/MariaDB, MongoDB, Oracle, Postgres, SAP HANA and SQLite, as well as…
read the full typeorm overview →
About algernon
Web server with built in support for HTTP/2, HTTP/3 (QUIC), Lua, Teal, Markdown, Pongo2, HyperApp, Amber, Sass(SCSS), GCSS, JSX, TypeScript, Ollama (LLMs), BoltDB (built in, stores the database in a file, like SQLite), Redis, Valkey, PostgreSQL, SQLite, MariaDB, MySQL, MSSQL, IPv6, npm less React 19, rate limiting, graceful shutdown, plugins, users and permissions. All in one small self contained executable. Distro Packages Quick installation Requires Go 1.26 or later. go install github.com/xyproto/algernon@latest Or manually (development version): Releases and pre built images See the release page for releases…
read the full algernon overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is typeorm or algernon more popular?
typeorm has 36,665 GitHub stars and algernon has 3,032. typeorm has the larger community by that measure.
Are typeorm and algernon free?
Both are open source. typeorm is licensed under MIT and algernon under BSD-3-Clause. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between typeorm and algernon?
typeorm is written in TypeScript and algernon in JavaScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, typeorm or algernon?
Choose typeorm if you want the larger community (36,665 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose algernon if its feature set, stack or BSD-3-Clause licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.