# koel vs sdnext

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

| | koel | sdnext |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 75/100 ✓ | 71/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 59 in Music Streaming | #3 of 11 in Image Generation |
| GitHub stars | 17 322 ✓ | 7 362 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +59 ✓ | +16 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 22 ✓ | 0 |
| Latest release | v9.15.0 · 28 Sept 2026 | — |
| Setup | Moderate ✓ | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | No | Yes ✓ |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | PHP | Python |

## Which one should you pick?

koel scores 75/100 against 71/100 for sdnext, so it is the safer default.

koel ships more often: 22 stable releases in the past year, against 0 for sdnext.

koel is growing faster right now (+59 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [koel](https://selfhost.directory/project/koel) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/koel.md)
- [sdnext](https://selfhost.directory/project/sdnext) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/sdnext.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/koel-vs-sdnext