OwnTracks Recorder vs Tasmota
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted home automation options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
OwnTracks Recorder
Self-hosted store and access for location history
VS
Tasmota
Open-source firmware for ESP-based smart devices
| Feature | OwnTracks Recorder | Tasmota |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Home Automation | Home Automation |
| License | GPL-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | C | C |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 16 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,187 | ★ 24,662 |
| First released | 2015 | 2016 |
| Replaces | Google Location Sharing, Life360 | Tuya Cloud |
Why pick each one
Choose OwnTracks Recorder if…
- Fully private location tracking
- Very lightweight
Frequently asked questions
Is OwnTracks Recorder or Tasmota better?
Neither is universally better. Tasmota has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are OwnTracks Recorder and Tasmota free and open-source?
Yes. OwnTracks Recorder is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Tasmota under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run OwnTracks Recorder and Tasmota with Docker?
OwnTracks Recorder: yes. Tasmota: check the project docs for container support.