ethiboxvsFreeScout
Two self-hosted Zendesk alternatives, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| ethibox | FreeScout | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 48/100 | 65/100 |
| Rank in category | #7 of 20 in Application Management | #3 of 9 in Helpdesk |
| GitHub stars | 260 | 4 620 |
| Stars, last 30 days | — | +65 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 21 | 33 |
| Latest release | v2.21.0 · 27 Oct 2026 | 1.8.248 · 17 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Moderate | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | GPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Main language | JavaScript | PHP |
Which one should you pick?
FreeScout scores 65/100 against 48/100 for ethibox, so it is the safer default.
FreeScout ships more often: 33 stable releases in the past year, against 21 for ethibox.
FreeScout is growing faster right now (+65 stars in 30 days).
ethibox details →FreeScout details → All Zendesk alternatives →