# Appwrite vs polar

> Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.

| | Appwrite | polar |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 84/100 ✓ | 71/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 15 in Backend as a Service | #1 of 13 in Billing |
| GitHub stars | 57 788 ✓ | 10 436 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +327 ✓ | +157 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 17 ✓ | 1 |
| Latest release | 1.9.10 · 24 Oct 2026 ✓ | @polar-sh/cli@3.0.0 · 16 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Moderate ✓ | Advanced |
| Official Docker image | Yes ✓ | No |
| License | BSD-3-Clause | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | Typescript | Python |

## Which one should you pick?

Appwrite scores 84/100 against 71/100 for polar, so it is the safer default.

Appwrite ships more often: 17 stable releases in the past year, against 1 for polar.

If you want the quickest setup, Appwrite is easier to run; polar needs more configuration.

Appwrite is growing faster right now (+327 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [Appwrite](https://selfhost.directory/project/appwrite) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/appwrite.md)
- [polar](https://selfhost.directory/project/polar) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/polar.md)

## Related comparisons

- [Appwrite vs coolify](https://selfhost.directory/compare/appwrite-vs-coolify)
- [Appwrite vs supabase](https://selfhost.directory/compare/appwrite-vs-supabase)
- [Appwrite vs dokploy](https://selfhost.directory/compare/appwrite-vs-dokploy)

---
Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/appwrite-vs-polar