Lufi vs Plik
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted file sync & storage options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Lufi
Let users fight uploads with client-side encryption
VS
Plik
Temporary file upload system (Wetransfer like)
| Feature | Lufi | Plik |
|---|---|---|
| Category | File Sync & Storage | File Sync & Storage |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | Perl | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 50 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 300 | ★ 1,810 |
| First released | 2015 | 2026 |
| Replaces | WeTransfer, Firefox Send | WeTransfer |
Why pick each one
Choose Lufi if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Perl
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Choose Plik if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Active community (1.8k GitHub stars)
- Written in Go
- Tiny footprint — runs in 50 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Lufi or Plik better?
Neither is universally better. Plik has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Lufi and Plik free and open-source?
Yes. Lufi is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Plik under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Lufi and Plik with Docker?
Lufi: yes. Plik: check the project docs for container support.