SOLECTRUS vs ThingsBoard
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?
SOLECTRUS
Photovoltaic dashboard that displays energy production and consumption
VS
ThingsBoard
Open-source IoT platform for device management and data
| Feature | SOLECTRUS | ThingsBoard |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Home Automation | Home Automation |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Ruby | Java |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 2,048 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker, kubernetes, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 161 | ★ 22,200 |
| First released | 2026 | 2017 |
| Replaces | — | AWS IoT, Azure IoT |
Why pick each one
Choose SOLECTRUS if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Ruby
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is SOLECTRUS or ThingsBoard better?
Neither is universally better. ThingsBoard has the larger community, while SOLECTRUS is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are SOLECTRUS and ThingsBoard free and open-source?
Yes. SOLECTRUS is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and ThingsBoard under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run SOLECTRUS and ThingsBoard with Docker?
SOLECTRUS: yes. ThingsBoard: yes.