copyparty vs Unison
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
Unison
Bidirectional file synchronizer with conflict detection
| Feature | copyparty | Unison |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 100 · Excellent | 88 · Excellent |
| Category | File Sync & Storage | File Sync & Storage |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Python | OCaml |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | bare-metal, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 46,774 | ★ 5,493 |
| First released | 2019 | 1999 |
| Replaces | Dropbox, Google Drive | Dropbox |
What are copyparty and Unison?
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
Unison
Unison is a mature bidirectional file synchronization tool that reconciles changes made independently on two replicas. It detects conflicts, preserves both versions, and works over SSH for secure remote syncing.
- True bidirectional sync
- Conflict detection
- Works over SSH
- Cross-platform replicas
copyparty vs Unison: key differences
Copyparty is written in Python, while Unison is built with OCaml. Licensing differs — MIT for copyparty versus GPL-3.0 for Unison. Unison is the more established project (first released 1999), while copyparty arrived in 2019. Copyparty has the considerably larger community, at 46,774 GitHub stars versus 5,493. Copyparty lists first-class Docker deployment; Unison does not.
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 Unison if…
- Very reliable
- Fine-grained control
Watch out for
- Dated GTK interface
- Version matching between hosts
Frequently asked questions
Is copyparty or Unison better?
copyparty is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Unison if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are copyparty and Unison free and open-source?
Yes. copyparty is licensed under MIT and Unison under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run copyparty and Unison with Docker?
copyparty: yes. Unison: check the project docs for container support.