kobodl 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.
Not the right match-up?
kobodl
Download and de-DRM books from your Kobo account
VS
Readest
Cross-platform ebook reader with sync server
| Feature | kobodl | Readest |
|---|---|---|
| Category | E-books & Media Library | E-books & Media Library |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Python | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 606 | ★ 23,192 |
| First released | 2020 | 2024 |
| Replaces | Kobo | Kindle, Apple Books |
Why pick each one
Choose kobodl if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Python
Choose Readest if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 23.2k GitHub stars
- Written in TypeScript
Frequently asked questions
Is kobodl or Readest better?
Neither is universally better. Readest has the larger community, while kobodl is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are kobodl and Readest free and open-source?
Yes. kobodl is licensed under MIT and Readest under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run kobodl and Readest with Docker?
kobodl: yes. Readest: yes.