Komga vs Kthoom
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 | Komga | Kthoom |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 91 · Excellent | 56 · Fair |
| Category | E-books & Media Library | E-books & Media Library |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | Kotlin | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | docker | bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 6,688 | ★ 150 |
| First released | 2019 | 2011 |
| Replaces | ComiXology, Kindle | ComiXology |
What are Komga and Kthoom?
Komga
Komga is a self-hosted media server focused on comics, manga, BD, and e-books with a clean web reader and OPDS support. It targets comic and manga collectors. It is deployed via Docker.
- Comic and manga focused
- Web reader with OPDS
- Metadata and collections
- REST API
Kthoom
Kthoom is a comic book reader that runs entirely in the web browser, opening CBZ, CBR, and other archive formats. It can be self-hosted as static files for reading comics from any device.
- In-browser comic reading
- CBZ and CBR support
- Static self-hosting
- No server runtime needed
Komga vs Kthoom: key differences
Komga is written in Kotlin, while Kthoom is built with JavaScript. Kthoom is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Komga. Kthoom is the more established project (first released 2011), while Komga arrived in 2019. Komga has the considerably larger community, at 6,688 GitHub stars versus 150. Komga lists first-class Docker deployment; Kthoom does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Komga if…
- Excellent for comics
- Good metadata handling
- OPDS for apps
Watch out for
- Less ideal for plain e-books
- Niche focus
Choose Kthoom if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in JavaScript
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Watch out for
- Reader only, no library
- Minimal organization
Frequently asked questions
Is Komga or Kthoom better?
Neither is universally better. Komga has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Komga and Kthoom free and open-source?
Yes. Komga is licensed under MIT and Kthoom under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Komga and Kthoom with Docker?
Komga: yes. Kthoom: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Komga or Kthoom?
Kthoom has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Komga. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.