Immich vs Magic Wormhole
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted apps from related categories — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Immich
High-performance self-hosted photo and video backup
VS
Magic Wormhole
Get things from one computer to another, safely
| Feature | Immich | Magic Wormhole |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Photo Management | File Sync & Storage |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | TypeScript | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 2,048 MB | 32 MB |
| Deployment | docker | binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 109,945 | ★ 22,792 |
| First released | 2022 | 2016 |
| Replaces | Google Photos, iCloud Photos | WeTransfer, AirDrop |
Why pick each one
Choose Magic Wormhole if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Mature project with 22.8k GitHub stars
- Written in Python
Frequently asked questions
Is Immich or Magic Wormhole better?
Neither is universally better. Immich has the larger community, while Magic Wormhole is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Immich and Magic Wormhole free and open-source?
Yes. Immich is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Magic Wormhole under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Immich and Magic Wormhole with Docker?
Immich: yes. Magic Wormhole: check the project docs for container support.