Foliate vs Readest
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted e-books & media library options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Foliate | Readest |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 65 · Good | 97 · Excellent |
| Category | E-books & Media Library | E-books & Media Library |
| License | GPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | JavaScript | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 8,757 | ★ 24,545 |
| First released | 2019 | 2024 |
| Replaces | Kindle | Kindle, Apple Books |
What are Foliate and Readest?
Foliate
Foliate is an open-source ebook reader for the Linux desktop built with GTK. It reads EPUB and other ebook formats with a clean paginated view, customizable themes, annotations, and offline reading. It is a desktop app, not a server.
- Ebook reading
- EPUB and PDF support
- Annotations and highlights
- Offline reading
Readest
Readest is an open-source ebook reader with a self-hostable sync server for keeping reading progress and annotations consistent across devices. It supports EPUB and other common formats.
- Cross-device progress sync
- EPUB and PDF support
- Annotations and highlights
- Self-hostable sync server
Foliate vs Readest: key differences
Foliate is written in JavaScript, while Readest is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for Foliate versus AGPL-3.0 for Readest. Foliate is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Readest. Foliate is the more established project (first released 2019), while Readest arrived in 2024. Readest has the considerably larger community, at 24,545 GitHub stars versus 8,757.
Why pick each one
Choose Foliate if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 8.8k GitHub stars
Watch out for
- Primarily a desktop reader
- See Foliate desktop app
Choose Readest if…
- Clean modern interface
- Cross-device sync
- Multiple format support
Watch out for
- Relatively young project
- Smaller community
Frequently asked questions
Is Foliate or Readest better?
Neither is universally better. Readest has the larger community, while Foliate is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Foliate and Readest free and open-source?
Yes. Foliate is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Readest under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Foliate and Readest with Docker?
Foliate: yes. Readest: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Foliate or Readest?
Foliate has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Readest. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.