EMQX vs ESPHome Web Tools
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted home automation options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
| Feature | EMQX | ESPHome Web Tools |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Home Automation | Home Automation |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Language | Erlang | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 32 MB |
| Deployment | docker | source, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 16,599 | ★ 59 |
| First released | 2026 | 2021 |
| Replaces | — | Tuya Smart |
Why pick each one
Choose EMQX if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 16.6k GitHub stars
- Written in Erlang
Frequently asked questions
Is EMQX or ESPHome Web Tools better?
Neither is universally better. EMQX has the larger community, while ESPHome Web Tools is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are EMQX and ESPHome Web Tools free and open-source?
Yes. EMQX is licensed under Apache-2.0 and ESPHome Web Tools under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run EMQX and ESPHome Web Tools with Docker?
EMQX: yes. ESPHome Web Tools: check the project docs for container support.