Music AssistantvsShields
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| Music Assistant | Shields | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 71/100 | 80/100 |
| Rank in category | #3 of 59 in Music Streaming | #6 of 166 in Developer Tools |
| GitHub stars | 3 257 | 27 331 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +147 | +125 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 45 | 0 |
| Latest release | 2.11.0b7 · 23 Oct 2026 | — |
| Setup | Moderate | Easy |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | Python | JavaScript |
Which one should you pick?
Shields scores 80/100 against 71/100 for Music Assistant, so it is the safer default.
Music Assistant ships more often: 45 stable releases in the past year, against 0 for Shields.
If you want the quickest setup, Shields is easier to run; Music Assistant needs more configuration.
Music Assistant details →Shields details →
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