Fabric vs OpenHands
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted self-hosted ai options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Fabric
Open-source framework for augmenting humans with AI
VS
OpenHands
Autonomous AI software engineering agent
| Feature | Fabric | OpenHands |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Self-Hosted AI | Self-Hosted AI |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | Go | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 4,096 MB |
| Deployment | binary, bare-metal | docker, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 43,353 | ★ 83,415 |
| First released | 2024 | 2024 |
| Replaces | ChatGPT | Devin, GitHub Copilot Workspace |
Why pick each one
Choose Fabric if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Mature project with 43.4k GitHub stars
- Written in Go
Choose OpenHands if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 83.4k GitHub stars
- Written in TypeScript
Frequently asked questions
Is Fabric or OpenHands better?
Neither is universally better. OpenHands has the larger community, while Fabric is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Fabric and OpenHands free and open-source?
Yes. Fabric is licensed under MIT and OpenHands under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Fabric and OpenHands with Docker?
Fabric: check the project docs for container support. OpenHands: yes.