head to head · open source
Zen Browser vs webui
Zen Browser has 44,486 GitHub stars, 1,755 forks, 689 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. webui has 4,601 stars, 305 forks, 6 open issues and last shipped 1 months ago. Zen Browser leads on adoption by 867% (44,486 vs 4,601 stars). Zen Browser is written in C++ under MPL-2.0; webui is written in C under MIT. Zen Browser has attracted 4% as many forks as stars, webui 7%. Zen Browser 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
| Zen Browser | webui | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 44K | ★ 4.6K |
| License | MPL-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | C++ | C |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-08-14 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.8K | ⑂ 305 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Zen Browser if
- You weight community size — 44K stars and counting
- You want the MPL-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick webui if
- You want the webui feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches C
- You evaluated both and webui fits your workflow better
About Zen Browser
Zen Browser is a privacy focused, open source web browser built on Firefox’s Gecko engine. It inherits Firefox’s compatibility and extension ecosystem while introducing a streamlined interface and productivity oriented features. The project lives in the desktop browser ecosystem, targeting users who want a Firefox based experience with reduced clutter and enhanced customization.
read the full Zen Browser overview →
About webui
WebUI is a lightweight, portable C library that turns any web browser or WebView into the graphical interface of a native application, letting the backend be written in a preferred language while the frontend uses modern web technologies.
read the full webui overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Zen Browser or webui more popular?
Zen Browser has 44,486 GitHub stars and webui has 4,601. Zen Browser has the larger community by that measure.
Are Zen Browser and webui free?
Both are open source. Zen Browser is licensed under MPL-2.0 and webui under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Zen Browser and webui?
Zen Browser is written in C++ and webui 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, Zen Browser or webui?
Choose Zen Browser if you want the larger community (44,486 stars) or its MPL-2.0 licence terms. Choose webui if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.