diyHue vs Zigbee Herdsman
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted home automation options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
diyHue
Open-source emulator of the Philips Hue Bridge
VS
Zigbee Herdsman
Zigbee adapter library that powers Zigbee2MQTT
| Feature | diyHue | Zigbee Herdsman |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 66 · Good | 80 · Excellent |
| Category | Home Automation | Home Automation |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | Python | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | source, docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,823 | ★ 565 |
| First released | 2017 | 2018 |
| Replaces | Philips Hue Bridge | Philips Hue Bridge |
What are diyHue and Zigbee Herdsman?
diyHue
diyHue is an open-source project that emulates a Philips Hue Bridge, allowing many lights and devices to work with Hue apps and ecosystems. It bridges DIY and third-party lights into the Hue world.
- Emulates the Hue Bridge
- Supports DIY and third-party lights
- Works with Hue apps
- Local operation
Zigbee Herdsman
Zigbee Herdsman is an open-source Node.js/TypeScript library that communicates with Zigbee coordinator adapters to form networks and control devices programmatically. It is the foundation of Zigbee2MQTT rather than an end-user application.
- Zigbee coordinator library
- Powers Zigbee2MQTT
- Supports many adapters
- Programmatic device control
diyHue vs Zigbee Herdsman: key differences
DiyHue is written in Python, while Zigbee Herdsman is built with TypeScript. DiyHue has the considerably larger community, at 1,823 GitHub stars versus 565.
Why pick each one
Choose diyHue if…
- No physical bridge needed
- Broad light support
Watch out for
- Compatibility quirks
- Configuration is technical
Choose Zigbee Herdsman if…
- Foundation of an open Zigbee stack
- Broad hardware support
Watch out for
- Library not an end-user app
- Requires development knowledge
Frequently asked questions
Is diyHue or Zigbee Herdsman better?
diyHue is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider Zigbee Herdsman if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are diyHue and Zigbee Herdsman free and open-source?
Yes. diyHue is licensed under MIT and Zigbee Herdsman under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run diyHue and Zigbee Herdsman with Docker?
diyHue: yes. Zigbee Herdsman: yes.