Frigate vs OwnTracks Recorder
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?
Frigate
Local NVR with real-time AI object detection
VS
OwnTracks Recorder
Self-hosted store and access for location history
| Feature | Frigate | OwnTracks Recorder |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Home Automation | Home Automation |
| License | MIT | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | C |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 2,048 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 34,903 | ★ 1,187 |
| First released | 2020 | 2015 |
| Replaces | Google Home | Google Location Sharing, Life360 |
Why pick each one
Choose OwnTracks Recorder if…
- Fully private location tracking
- Very lightweight
Frequently asked questions
Is Frigate or OwnTracks Recorder better?
Neither is universally better. Frigate has the larger community, while OwnTracks Recorder is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Frigate and OwnTracks Recorder free and open-source?
Yes. Frigate is licensed under MIT and OwnTracks Recorder under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Frigate and OwnTracks Recorder with Docker?
Frigate: yes. OwnTracks Recorder: yes.