# Blackbox exporter vs paperclip

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

| | Blackbox exporter | paperclip |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 70/100 | 88/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #3 of 51 in Monitoring & observability | #4 of 125 in AI |
| GitHub stars | 5 922 | 108 237 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | +16 | +26 873 ✓ |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 3 | 10 ✓ |
| Latest release | v0.29.1 · 21 Oct 2026 ✓ | v2026.1012.0 · 12 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Easy ✓ | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Main language | Go | Typescript |

## Which one should you pick?

paperclip scores 88/100 against 70/100 for Blackbox exporter, so it is the safer default.

paperclip ships more often: 10 stable releases in the past year, against 3 for Blackbox exporter.

If you want the quickest setup, Blackbox exporter is easier to run; paperclip needs more configuration.

paperclip is growing faster right now (+26 873 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [Blackbox exporter](https://selfhost.directory/project/blackbox-exporter) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/blackbox-exporter.md)
- [paperclip](https://selfhost.directory/project/paperclip) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/paperclip.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/blackbox-exporter-vs-paperclip