Audiobookshelfvspolar
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| Audiobookshelf | polar | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 79/100 | 71/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 15 in Audiobook Management | #1 of 13 in Billing |
| GitHub stars | 14 841 | 10 436 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +404 | +157 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 14 | 1 |
| Latest release | v2.37.2 · 23 Oct 2026 | @polar-sh/cli@3.0.0 · 16 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Easy | Advanced |
| Official Docker image | Yes | No |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | JavaScript | Python |
Which one should you pick?
Audiobookshelf scores 79/100 against 71/100 for polar, so it is the safer default.
Audiobookshelf ships more often: 14 stable releases in the past year, against 1 for polar.
If you want the quickest setup, Audiobookshelf is easier to run; polar needs more configuration.
Audiobookshelf is growing faster right now (+404 stars in 30 days).
Audiobookshelf details →polar details →
Swap a project
Keep Audiobookshelf, compare it with
Keep polar, compare it with