SHSelfHostIndex

Home Assistant vs Ring-MQTT

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?
HO Home Assistant Open-source home automation that puts privacy first VS RI Ring-MQTT Local MQTT bridge for Ring cameras and alarms
FeatureHome AssistantRing-MQTT
CategoryHome AutomationHome Automation
LicenseApache-2.0MIT
LanguagePythonJavaScript
Setup difficultyMediumMedium
Min. RAM1,024 MB256 MB
Deploymentdocker, bare-metal, one-clickdocker
GitHub stars★ 89,795★ 779
First released20132019
ReplacesSmartThings, Google HomeRing app

Why pick each one

Choose Home Assistant if…

  • Huge device support
  • Local control and privacy
  • Very active community
Home Assistant details

Choose Ring-MQTT if…

  • Released under the MIT license
  • First-class Docker support for quick deployment
  • Written in JavaScript
  • Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Ring-MQTT details

Frequently asked questions

Is Home Assistant or Ring-MQTT better?

Neither is universally better. Home Assistant has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are Home Assistant and Ring-MQTT free and open-source?

Yes. Home Assistant is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Ring-MQTT under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Home Assistant and Ring-MQTT with Docker?

Home Assistant: yes. Ring-MQTT: yes.

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