SHSelfHostIndex

Tasmota vs Zwave-JS Server

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?
TA Tasmota Open-source firmware for ESP-based smart devices VS ZW Zwave-JS Server Small server wrapping the Z-Wave JS driver over WebSocket
FeatureTasmotaZwave-JS Server
CategoryHome AutomationHome Automation
LicenseGPL-3.0Apache-2.0
LanguageCTypeScript
Setup difficultyMediumMedium
Min. RAM16 MB128 MB
Deploymentbinary, sourcedocker, binary
GitHub stars★ 24,662★ 162
First released20162021
ReplacesTuya CloudSmartThings

Why pick each one

Choose Tasmota if…

  • Total local control
  • Huge device support
Tasmota details

Choose Zwave-JS Server if…

  • Decouples driver from clients
  • Reliable
Zwave-JS Server details

Frequently asked questions

Is Tasmota or Zwave-JS Server 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 Tasmota and Zwave-JS Server free and open-source?

Yes. Tasmota is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Zwave-JS Server under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Tasmota and Zwave-JS Server with Docker?

Tasmota: check the project docs for container support. Zwave-JS Server: yes.

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