COPS vs Komga
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted e-books & media library options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | COPS | Komga |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 73 · Good | 91 · Excellent |
| Category | E-books & Media Library | E-books & Media Library |
| License | GPL-2.0 | MIT |
| Language | PHP | Kotlin |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 134 | ★ 6,688 |
| First released | 2013 | 2019 |
| Replaces | Kindle | ComiXology, Kindle |
What are COPS and Komga?
COPS
COPS is a lightweight Calibre OPDS and HTML PHP server that exposes a Calibre library without needing Calibre running. It targets users wanting a minimal way to share their library. It is deployed via Docker or a PHP stack.
- OPDS and HTML catalog
- Reads Calibre metadata database
- Very lightweight
- No Calibre process needed
Komga
Komga is a self-hosted media server focused on comics, manga, BD, and e-books with a clean web reader and OPDS support. It targets comic and manga collectors. It is deployed via Docker.
- Comic and manga focused
- Web reader with OPDS
- Metadata and collections
- REST API
COPS vs Komga: key differences
COPS is written in PHP, while Komga is built with Kotlin. Licensing differs — GPL-2.0 for COPS versus MIT for Komga. COPS is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Komga. COPS is the more established project (first released 2013), while Komga arrived in 2019. Komga has the considerably larger community, at 6,688 GitHub stars versus 134.
Why pick each one
Choose COPS if…
- Extremely lightweight
- Easy to host
- Good OPDS support
Watch out for
- Read-only catalog
- Basic interface
Choose Komga if…
- Excellent for comics
- Good metadata handling
- OPDS for apps
Watch out for
- Less ideal for plain e-books
- Niche focus
Frequently asked questions
Is COPS or Komga better?
Neither is universally better. Komga has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are COPS and Komga free and open-source?
Yes. COPS is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Komga under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run COPS and Komga with Docker?
COPS: yes. Komga: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, COPS or Komga?
COPS has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Komga. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.