FHEM vs OpenHAB Cloud
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted home automation options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
FHEM
Perl-based server for home automation tasks
VS
OpenHAB Cloud
Companion cloud service for remote openHAB access
| Feature | FHEM | OpenHAB Cloud |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 62 · Good | 75 · Good |
| Category | Home Automation | Home Automation |
| License | GPL-2.0 | EPL-2.0 |
| Language | Perl | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 22 | ★ 306 |
| First released | 2005 | 2014 |
| Replaces | SmartThings | SmartThings |
What are FHEM and OpenHAB Cloud?
FHEM
FHEM is a long-standing, GPL-licensed server for home automation used to control lights, heating, alarms, and many other devices. It supports a vast range of protocols through community modules.
- Vast protocol support
- Community module library
- Lightweight Perl server
- Long-term reliability
OpenHAB Cloud
openHAB Cloud is the self-hostable companion service that provides remote access, notifications, and integrations for openHAB installations. It bridges local openHAB instances to external services securely.
- Remote openHAB access
- Push notifications
- IFTTT and voice integrations
- Self-hostable backend
FHEM vs OpenHAB Cloud: key differences
FHEM is written in Perl, while OpenHAB Cloud is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — GPL-2.0 for FHEM versus EPL-2.0 for OpenHAB Cloud. FHEM is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for OpenHAB Cloud. FHEM is the more established project (first released 2005), while OpenHAB Cloud arrived in 2014. OpenHAB Cloud has the considerably larger community, at 306 GitHub stars versus 22.
Why pick each one
Choose FHEM if…
- Extremely mature
- Runs on modest hardware
Watch out for
- Dated, technical interface
- Configuration is arcane
Choose OpenHAB Cloud if…
- Keeps data under your control
- Enables remote control
Watch out for
- Requires MongoDB
- Setup is involved
Frequently asked questions
Is FHEM or OpenHAB Cloud better?
Neither is universally better. OpenHAB Cloud has the larger community; both share a hard setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are FHEM and OpenHAB Cloud free and open-source?
Yes. FHEM is licensed under GPL-2.0 and OpenHAB Cloud under EPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run FHEM and OpenHAB Cloud with Docker?
FHEM: yes. OpenHAB Cloud: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, FHEM or OpenHAB Cloud?
FHEM has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for OpenHAB Cloud. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.