evcc vs SmartApp Bridge
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted home automation options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
evcc
Solar-aware electric vehicle charging controller
VS
SmartApp Bridge
Self-hosted automation engine for IoT devices
| Feature | evcc | SmartApp Bridge |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 91 · Excellent | 82 · Excellent |
| Category | Home Automation | Home Automation |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Go | Java |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 7,283 | ★ 2,066 |
| First released | 2019 | 2014 |
| Replaces | SmartThings | SmartThings |
What are evcc and SmartApp Bridge?
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
SmartApp Bridge
A self-hosted automation engine that connects IoT devices and runs event-driven rules across protocols. It targets users who want a lightweight alternative to large home automation hubs.
- Event-driven rules
- Multi-protocol IoT
- Lightweight runtime
- Large add-on catalog
evcc vs SmartApp Bridge: key differences
Evcc is written in Go, while SmartApp Bridge is built with Java. Licensing differs — MIT for evcc versus Apache-2.0 for SmartApp Bridge. Evcc is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for SmartApp Bridge. SmartApp Bridge is the more established project (first released 2014), while evcc arrived in 2019. Evcc has the considerably larger community, at 7,283 GitHub stars versus 2,066.
Why pick each one
Choose evcc if…
- Maximizes solar self-use
- Wide hardware support
- Lightweight
Watch out for
- Niche use case
- Requires compatible hardware
Choose SmartApp Bridge if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (2.1k GitHub stars)
- Written in Java
Frequently asked questions
Is evcc or SmartApp Bridge better?
Neither is universally better. evcc has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are evcc and SmartApp Bridge free and open-source?
Yes. evcc is licensed under MIT and SmartApp Bridge under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run evcc and SmartApp Bridge with Docker?
evcc: yes. SmartApp Bridge: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, evcc or SmartApp Bridge?
evcc has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for SmartApp Bridge. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.