Cloudreve vs darktable
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted apps from related categories — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Cloudreve
File management and sharing system, supports multiple storage
VS
darktable
Open-source photography workflow and RAW developer
| Feature | Cloudreve | darktable |
|---|---|---|
| Category | File Sync & Storage | Photo Management |
| License | GPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Go | C |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 2,048 MB |
| Deployment | docker | bare-metal, binary, snap |
| GitHub stars | ★ 28,485 | ★ 12,904 |
| First released | 2026 | 2009 |
| Replaces | — | Adobe Lightroom |
Why pick each one
Choose Cloudreve if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 28.5k GitHub stars
- Written in Go
Choose darktable if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Mature project with 12.9k GitHub stars
- Written in C
Frequently asked questions
Is Cloudreve or darktable better?
Neither is universally better. Cloudreve has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Cloudreve and darktable free and open-source?
Yes. Cloudreve is licensed under GPL-3.0 and darktable under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Cloudreve and darktable with Docker?
Cloudreve: yes. darktable: check the project docs for container support.