Lychee vs Nextcloud Photos
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted photo management options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Lychee | Nextcloud Photos |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 89 · Excellent | 76 · Good |
| Category | Photo Management | Photo Management |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | PHP | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 4,303 | ★ 721 |
| First released | 2012 | 2020 |
| Replaces | Google Photos, Flickr | Google Photos, iCloud Photos |
What are Lychee and Nextcloud Photos?
Lychee
Lychee is a self-hosted photo management tool focused on simple, attractive galleries with quick uploads and sharing. It targets users who want a straightforward photo gallery. It is deployed via Docker or a PHP stack.
- Clean photo galleries
- Quick upload and sharing
- Albums and tags
- EXIF metadata display
Nextcloud Photos
Nextcloud Photos is the official photo management app for Nextcloud, offering a timeline view, albums, and tagging of images stored in your Nextcloud. It works alongside file sync to provide a self-hosted photo experience.
- Timeline photo view
- Albums and tagging
- Nextcloud integration
- Mobile auto-upload
Lychee vs Nextcloud Photos: key differences
Lychee is written in PHP, while Nextcloud Photos is built with JavaScript. Licensing differs — MIT for Lychee versus AGPL-3.0 for Nextcloud Photos. Lychee is the lighter option, starting around 512 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Nextcloud Photos. Lychee is the more established project (first released 2012), while Nextcloud Photos arrived in 2020. Lychee has the considerably larger community, at 4,303 GitHub stars versus 721.
Why pick each one
Choose Lychee if…
- Simple and attractive
- Easy to host
- Lightweight
Watch out for
- No AI features
- Basic search
Choose Nextcloud Photos if…
- Leverages existing Nextcloud
- Official app
Watch out for
- Requires Nextcloud
- Fewer AI features than Memories
Frequently asked questions
Is Lychee or Nextcloud Photos better?
Lychee is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Nextcloud Photos if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Lychee and Nextcloud Photos free and open-source?
Yes. Lychee is licensed under MIT and Nextcloud Photos under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Lychee and Nextcloud Photos with Docker?
Lychee: yes. Nextcloud Photos: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Lychee or Nextcloud Photos?
Lychee has the smaller minimum footprint at 512 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Nextcloud Photos. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.