copyparty vs Seafile
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted file sync & storage options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
copyparty
Portable file server with accelerated resumable uploads
VS
Seafile
High-performance file sync and share with block storage
| Feature | copyparty | Seafile |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 100 · Excellent | 76 · Good |
| Category | File Sync & Storage | File Sync & Storage |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Python | C |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 46,774 | ★ 15,273 |
| First released | 2019 | 2012 |
| Replaces | Dropbox, Google Drive | Dropbox, Google Drive |
What are copyparty and Seafile?
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
Seafile
Seafile is a file sync and share platform built around a reliable, high-performance file storage engine. It is well suited for users and organizations that prioritize fast, reliable sync of large libraries. It is typically deployed via Docker Compose or on bare metal.
- Fast block-level sync engine
- Client-side encrypted libraries
- Reliable handling of large file sets
- Desktop, mobile and web clients
copyparty vs Seafile: key differences
Copyparty is written in Python, while Seafile is built with C. Licensing differs — MIT for copyparty versus AGPL-3.0 for Seafile. Copyparty is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Seafile. Seafile is the more established project (first released 2012), while copyparty arrived in 2019. Copyparty has the considerably larger community, at 46,774 GitHub stars versus 15,273.
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 Seafile if…
- Excellent sync performance
- Stable and battle-tested
- Good for large libraries
Watch out for
- Fewer collaboration features than Nextcloud
- Setup more involved than simple tools
Frequently asked questions
Is copyparty or Seafile better?
copyparty is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Seafile if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are copyparty and Seafile free and open-source?
Yes. copyparty is licensed under MIT and Seafile under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run copyparty and Seafile with Docker?
copyparty: yes. Seafile: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, copyparty or Seafile?
copyparty has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Seafile. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.