EtherCalc vs Luckysheet
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted office suites options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | EtherCalc | Luckysheet |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 87 · Excellent | 15 · At risk |
| Status | Actively maintained | Archived |
| Category | Office Suites | Office Suites |
| License | CPAL-1.0 | MIT |
| Language | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | source, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,050 | ★ 16,641 |
| First released | 2013 | 2019 |
| Replaces | Google Sheets | Google Sheets, Microsoft Excel |
What are EtherCalc and Luckysheet?
EtherCalc
EtherCalc is an open-source web spreadsheet that allows real-time collaboration. Multiple users can edit the same spreadsheet simultaneously from their browsers.
- Real-time spreadsheet editing
- No login required
- REST API for cells
- Lightweight deployment
Luckysheet
Luckysheet is an open-source, feature-rich online spreadsheet library. It supports formulas, pivot tables, charts, and conditional formatting for embedding in web apps.
- Excel-like spreadsheet UI
- Formulas and pivot tables
- Charts and conditional formats
- Embeddable in web apps
EtherCalc vs Luckysheet: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: Luckysheet's repository is archived and no longer developed, while EtherCalc is actively maintained. EtherCalc is written in TypeScript, while Luckysheet is built with JavaScript. Licensing differs — CPAL-1.0 for EtherCalc versus MIT for Luckysheet. EtherCalc is the more established project (first released 2013), while Luckysheet arrived in 2019. Luckysheet has the considerably larger community, at 16,641 GitHub stars versus 3,050. EtherCalc lists first-class Docker deployment; Luckysheet does not.
Why pick each one
Choose EtherCalc if…
- Released under the CPAL-1.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (3k GitHub stars)
Choose Luckysheet if…
- Rich spreadsheet features
- Embeds in web apps
- Pivot tables and charts
Watch out for
- Upstream development stopped
- Succeeded by Univer
- Docs mainly Chinese
Frequently asked questions
Is EtherCalc or Luckysheet better?
Neither is universally better. Luckysheet has the larger community, while EtherCalc is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are EtherCalc and Luckysheet free and open-source?
Yes. EtherCalc is licensed under CPAL-1.0 and Luckysheet under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run EtherCalc and Luckysheet with Docker?
EtherCalc: yes. Luckysheet: check the project docs for container support.