# CUPS vs plain-app

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

| | CUPS | plain-app |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 67/100 | 69/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #1 of 11 in Device Management | #3 of 11 in File Transfer & Sync |
| GitHub stars | 1 787 | 7 083 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | +34 | +323 ✓ |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 6 | 34 ✓ |
| Latest release | v2.4.20 · 5 Oct 2026 ✓ | v3.3.25 · 11 Sept 2026 |
| Setup | Moderate | Easy ✓ |
| Official Docker image | No | No |
| License | Apache-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Main language | C | Kotlin |

## Which one should you pick?

plain-app scores 69/100 against 67/100 for CUPS, so it is the safer default.

plain-app ships more often: 34 stable releases in the past year, against 6 for CUPS.

If you want the quickest setup, plain-app is easier to run; CUPS needs more configuration.

plain-app is growing faster right now (+323 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [CUPS](https://selfhost.directory/project/cups) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/cups.md)
- [plain-app](https://selfhost.directory/project/plain-app) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/plain-app.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/cups-vs-plain-app