# PaddleOCR vs SmarterRouter

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

| | PaddleOCR | SmarterRouter |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 85/100 ✓ | 47/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 4 in OCR | #36 of 69 in AI Chat |
| GitHub stars | 91 931 ✓ | 154 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +490 ✓ | +0 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 7 | 10 ✓ |
| Latest release | v3.7.0 · 11 Jun 2026 ✓ | 2.2.5 · 18 Apr 2026 |
| Setup | Moderate | Moderate ✓ |
| Official Docker image | No | Yes ✓ |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Main language | Python | Python |

## Which one should you pick?

PaddleOCR scores 85/100 against 47/100 for SmarterRouter, so it is the safer default.

SmarterRouter ships more often: 10 stable releases in the past year, against 7 for PaddleOCR.

PaddleOCR is growing faster right now (+490 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [PaddleOCR](https://selfhost.directory/project/paddleocr) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/paddleocr.md)
- [SmarterRouter](https://selfhost.directory/project/smarterrouter) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/smarterrouter.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/paddleocr-vs-smarterrouter