copyparty vs FileBrowser Quantum
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted file sync & storage options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | copyparty | FileBrowser Quantum |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 100 · Excellent | 92 · Excellent |
| Category | File Sync & Storage | File Sync & Storage |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Python | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 46,765 | ★ 8,397 |
| First released | 2019 | 2024 |
| Replaces | Dropbox, Google Drive | Google Drive, Dropbox |
What are copyparty and FileBrowser Quantum?
copyparty
copyparty is a portable file server with features including resumable uploads, deduplication, WebDAV, FTP, and media indexing. It runs from a single Python file with no dependencies.
- Accelerated resumable uploads
- WebDAV, FTP, and TFTP support
- Single-file Python deployment
FileBrowser Quantum
FileBrowser Quantum is a community fork of File Browser that adds advanced search, multiple sources, and improved performance. It provides a web interface for managing files on a server.
- Advanced indexed search
- Multiple file sources
- Improved performance over original
copyparty vs FileBrowser Quantum: key differences
Copyparty is written in Python, while FileBrowser Quantum is built with Go. Licensing differs — MIT for copyparty versus Apache-2.0 for FileBrowser Quantum. Copyparty is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 128 MB for FileBrowser Quantum. Copyparty is the more established project (first released 2019), while FileBrowser Quantum arrived in 2024. Copyparty has the considerably larger community, at 46,765 GitHub stars versus 8,397.
Why pick each one
Choose copyparty if…
- Single-file deployment
- Fast resumable uploads
- WebDAV and FTP built in
Watch out for
- Unconventional interface
- Many flags to learn
Choose FileBrowser Quantum if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 8.4k GitHub stars
Frequently asked questions
Is copyparty or FileBrowser Quantum better?
Neither is universally better. copyparty has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are copyparty and FileBrowser Quantum free and open-source?
Yes. copyparty is licensed under MIT and FileBrowser Quantum under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run copyparty and FileBrowser Quantum with Docker?
copyparty: yes. FileBrowser Quantum: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, copyparty or FileBrowser Quantum?
copyparty has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 128 MB for FileBrowser Quantum. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.
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