SHSelfHostIndex

Z-Wave JS UI 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?
Z- Z-Wave JS UI Full-featured Z-Wave control panel and MQTT gateway VS ZW Zwave-JS Server Small server wrapping the Z-Wave JS driver over WebSocket
FeatureZ-Wave JS UIZwave-JS Server
CategoryHome AutomationHome Automation
LicenseMITApache-2.0
LanguageVueTypeScript
Setup difficultyMediumMedium
Min. RAM256 MB128 MB
Deploymentdocker, bare-metaldocker, binary
GitHub stars★ 1,234★ 162
First released20182021
ReplacesSmartThingsSmartThings

Why pick each one

Choose Z-Wave JS UI if…

  • Excellent Z-Wave support
  • Integrates with Home Assistant
Z-Wave JS UI details

Choose Zwave-JS Server if…

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

Frequently asked questions

Is Z-Wave JS UI or Zwave-JS Server better?

Neither is universally better. Z-Wave JS UI has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are Z-Wave JS UI and Zwave-JS Server free and open-source?

Yes. Z-Wave JS UI is licensed under MIT and Zwave-JS Server under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Z-Wave JS UI and Zwave-JS Server with Docker?

Z-Wave JS UI: yes. Zwave-JS Server: yes.

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