# Calibre Web vs Photon

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

| | Calibre Web | Photon |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 78/100 ✓ | 54/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 7 in E-book Management | #16 of 85 in Feed Reader |
| GitHub stars | 18 488 ✓ | 557 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +248 ✓ | +0 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 2 | 9 ✓ |
| Latest release | 0.6.27 · 8 Aug 2026 ✓ | v2.4.3 · 30 Jul 2026 |
| Setup | Easy ✓ | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | No | Yes ✓ |
| License | GPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Main language | Fluent | Svelte |

## Which one should you pick?

Calibre Web scores 78/100 against 54/100 for Photon, so it is the safer default.

Photon ships more often: 9 stable releases in the past year, against 2 for Calibre Web.

If you want the quickest setup, Calibre Web is easier to run; Photon needs more configuration.

Calibre Web is growing faster right now (+248 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [Calibre Web](https://selfhost.directory/project/calibre-web) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/calibre-web.md)
- [Photon](https://selfhost.directory/project/photon-2) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/photon-2.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/calibre-web-vs-photon-2