Audiobookshelf vs Radarr
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted media servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Audiobookshelf
Self-hosted audiobook and podcast server
VS
Radarr
Movie collection manager for Usenet and BitTorrent users
| Feature | Audiobookshelf | Radarr |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Media Servers | Media Servers |
| License | GPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0-only |
| Language | JavaScript | C# |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 100 MB |
| Deployment | docker | bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 13,896 | ★ 14,127 |
| First released | 2021 | 2023 |
| Replaces | Audible | — |
Why pick each one
Choose Audiobookshelf if…
- Great mobile apps
- Handles podcasts too
- Simple deployment
Choose Radarr if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0-only license
- Mature project with 14.1k GitHub stars
- Written in C#
- Tiny footprint — runs in 100 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Audiobookshelf or Radarr better?
Neither is universally better. Radarr has the larger community, while Audiobookshelf is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Audiobookshelf and Radarr free and open-source?
Yes. Audiobookshelf is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Radarr under GPL-3.0-only. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Audiobookshelf and Radarr with Docker?
Audiobookshelf: yes. Radarr: check the project docs for container support.