Node REDvsscalar
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| Node RED | scalar | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 81/100 | 76/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 26 in Automation | #3 of 13 in API |
| GitHub stars | 23 791 | 16 336 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +106 | +147 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 21 | 46 |
| Latest release | 4.1.17 · 21 Oct 2026 | release-2026-10-28-0d01943 · 28 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Easy | Easy |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Main language | JavaScript | Typescript |
Which one should you pick?
Node RED scores 81/100 against 76/100 for scalar, so it is the safer default.
scalar ships more often: 46 stable releases in the past year, against 21 for Node RED.
Node RED details →scalar details →
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