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evcc vs Home Assistant Operating System

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?
evcc Solar-aware electric vehicle charging controller VS HO Home Assistant Operating System Embedded operating system optimized for Home Assistant
FeatureevccHome Assistant Operating System
Deploy effortUnder-an-hour setup≈5-minute setup
Health score91 · Excellent91 · Excellent
CategoryHome AutomationHome Automation
LicenseMITApache-2.0
LanguageGoPython
Setup difficultyMediumEasy
Min. RAM256 MB1,024 MB
Deploymentdocker, binaryone-click, bare-metal
GitHub stars★ 7,283★ 7,492
First released20192019
ReplacesSmartThingsSmartThings, Hubitat

What are evcc and Home Assistant Operating System?

evcc

evcc is an open-source EV charging controller that optimizes charging around solar production and electricity prices. It targets EV owners with solar or dynamic tariffs. It is deployed via Docker or a binary.

  • Solar-optimized EV charging
  • Dynamic tariff support
  • Many wallbox integrations
  • Home Assistant integration

Read the full evcc guide →

Home Assistant Operating System

Home Assistant Operating System is a minimal embedded OS designed to run the Home Assistant smart home platform with add-on support. It manages updates and add-ons through the Supervisor.

  • Purpose-built OS for HA
  • Add-on store via Supervisor
  • Automatic updates
  • Runs on Pi and x86

Read the full Home Assistant Operating System guide →

evcc vs Home Assistant Operating System: key differences

Evcc is written in Go, while Home Assistant Operating System is built with Python. Licensing differs — MIT for evcc versus Apache-2.0 for Home Assistant Operating System. Evcc is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Home Assistant Operating System. Evcc lists first-class Docker deployment; Home Assistant Operating System does not.

Why pick each one

Choose evcc if…

  • Maximizes solar self-use
  • Wide hardware support
  • Lightweight

Watch out for

  • Niche use case
  • Requires compatible hardware
evcc details

Choose Home Assistant Operating System if…

  • Easiest full-featured HA install
  • Managed add-ons

Watch out for

  • Takes over the whole device
  • Less general-purpose
Home Assistant Operating System details

Frequently asked questions

Is evcc or Home Assistant Operating System better?

Home Assistant Operating System is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider evcc if its specific feature set fits your needs better.

Are evcc and Home Assistant Operating System free and open-source?

Yes. evcc is licensed under MIT and Home Assistant Operating System under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run evcc and Home Assistant Operating System with Docker?

evcc: yes. Home Assistant Operating System: check the project docs for container support.

Which is lighter on resources, evcc or Home Assistant Operating System?

evcc has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Home Assistant Operating System. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.

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