EteSync vs GNOME Calendar
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted calendar & contacts options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
EteSync
End-to-end encrypted sync for contacts and calendars
VS
GNOME Calendar
Simple desktop calendar with CalDAV support
| Feature | EteSync | GNOME Calendar |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Calendar & Contacts | Calendar & Contacts |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Python | C |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,765 | ★ 300 |
| First released | 2017 | 2015 |
| Replaces | Google Calendar, iCloud | Google Calendar |
Why pick each one
Choose EteSync if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (1.8k GitHub stars)
- Written in Python
Choose GNOME Calendar if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in C
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is EteSync or GNOME Calendar better?
Neither is universally better. EteSync has the larger community, while GNOME Calendar is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are EteSync and GNOME Calendar free and open-source?
Yes. EteSync is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and GNOME Calendar under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run EteSync and GNOME Calendar with Docker?
EteSync: yes. GNOME Calendar: check the project docs for container support.