12 picks · data-backed ranking
Best self-hosted apps for beginners (Docker)
The best self-hosted apps for beginners are n8n (source-available), Ollama and Open-WebUI (source-available). n8n leads with 208,840 GitHub stars.
Only apps that publish a Docker image.
Every pick ships a Docker image, and the ones with an appsgit step-by-step deploy guide come first, so you can follow a tested walkthrough on your first install.
Updated · data from GitHub, refreshed daily
Top picks
- Rank 1:
n8n
n8n-io/n8n
Free node based Workflow Automation Tool. Easily automate tasks across different services.
Active · last commit Oct 28, 2026
FeaturedSource-availableAutomation & WorkflowsTypeScriptDockerStands out for the most GitHub stars. n8n has 208,840 GitHub stars, is source-available under the Sustainable Use License 1.0 (not an open-source license), ships a Docker image and had 10,360 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier and IFTTT, and appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it.
- Rank 2:
Ollama
ollama/ollama
Get up and running with Llama 3.3, DeepSeek-R1, Phi-4, Gemma 3, and other large language models.
Active · last commit Oct 28, 2026
AI & LLM ToolsGoDockerAI-nativeStands out for a permissive MIT license. Ollama has 185,075 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 1,263 commits in the last year; it replaces ChatGPT, and appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it.
- Rank 3:
Open-WebUI
open-webui/open-webui
User-friendly AI Interface, supports Ollama, OpenAI API.
Active · last commit Oct 28, 2026
Source-availableAI & LLM ToolsPythonDockerAI-nativeStands out for AI features named in its own description. Open-WebUI has 157,004 GitHub stars, is source-available under the Open WebUI License (BSD-3-Clause plus branding clause) (not an open-source license), ships a Docker image and had 6,037 commits in the last year; it replaces ChatGPT and Lovable, and appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it.
At a glance
Self-hosted apps for beginners (Docker) compared
Apps with an appsgit deploy guide come first, sorted by stars; the rest are ranked on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses and recent commits. Projects with fewer than 12 commits in the last 12 months rank below every more active project.
| App | Stands out for | License | GitHub stars | Commits (12 mo) | Last commit | Docker image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| n8n | the most GitHub stars | source-available, Sustainable Use License 1.0 | 208,840 | 10,360 | Oct 28, 2026 | Yes |
| Ollama | a permissive MIT license | MIT | 185,075 | 1,263 | Oct 28, 2026 | Yes |
| Open-WebUI | AI features named in its own description | source-available, Open WebUI License (BSD-3-Clause plus branding clause) | 157,004 | 6,037 | Oct 28, 2026 | Yes |
| Immich | an appsgit step-by-step deploy guide | AGPL-3.0 | 117,454 | 2,902 | Oct 28, 2026 | Yes |
| Supabase | a permissive Apache-2.0 license | Apache-2.0 | 114,226 | 6,324 | Oct 28, 2026 | Yes |
| Uptime Kuma | – | MIT | 93,018 | 1,361 | Oct 28, 2026 | Yes |
| Home Assistant | – | Apache-2.0 | 91,788 | 21,554 | Oct 28, 2026 | Yes |
| Syncthing | – | MPL-2.0 | 89,827 | 244 | Oct 28, 2026 | Yes |
| Caddy | – | Apache-2.0 | 78,501 | 406 | Oct 27, 2026 | Yes |
| Grafana | – | AGPL-3.0 | 77,561 | 11,934 | Oct 28, 2026 | Yes |
Full ranking
All 12 picks, ranked
Apps with an appsgit deploy guide come first, sorted by stars; the rest are ranked on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses and recent commits. Projects with fewer than 12 commits in the last 12 months rank below every more active project.
- 1
n8nFeatured
Free node based Workflow Automation Tool. Easily automate tasks across different services.
Source-availableAutomation & WorkflowsDockerStands out for the most GitHub stars. n8n has 208,840 GitHub stars, is source-available under the Sustainable Use License 1.0 (not an open-source license), ships a Docker image and had 10,360 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier and IFTTT, and appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it.
- 2
Ollama
Get up and running with Llama 3.3, DeepSeek-R1, Phi-4, Gemma 3, and other large language models.
AI & LLM ToolsDockerAI-nativeStands out for a permissive MIT license. Ollama has 185,075 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 1,263 commits in the last year; it replaces ChatGPT, and appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it.
- 3
Open-WebUI
User-friendly AI Interface, supports Ollama, OpenAI API.
Source-availableAI & LLM ToolsDockerAI-nativeStands out for AI features named in its own description. Open-WebUI has 157,004 GitHub stars, is source-available under the Open WebUI License (BSD-3-Clause plus branding clause) (not an open-source license), ships a Docker image and had 6,037 commits in the last year; it replaces ChatGPT and Lovable, and appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it.
- 4
ImmichFeatured
Photo and video backup solution directly from your mobile phone (alternative to Google Photos).
Photo GalleriesDockerStands out for an appsgit step-by-step deploy guide. Immich has 117,454 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 2,902 commits in the last year; it replaces Google Photos and Adobe Photoshop, and appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it.
- 5
Supabase
Postgres development platform with auth, realtime, storage and edge functions, the open-source Firebase alternative.
Low-code & BackendDockerStands out for a permissive Apache-2.0 license. Supabase has 114,226 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 6,324 commits in the last year; it replaces Firebase, and appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it.
- 6
Uptime Kuma
Easy-to-use self-hosted uptime monitor with status pages and 90+ notification channels.
Monitoring & Status PagesDockerUptime Kuma has 93,018 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 1,361 commits in the last year; it replaces Datadog and Uptime Robot, and appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it.
- 7
Home AssistantFeatured
Home automation platform.
Home Automation & IoTDockerHome Assistant has 91,788 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 21,554 commits in the last year; it replaces Nest / SmartThings and Google Home, and appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it.
- 8
Syncthing
Syncthing is an open source peer-to-peer file synchronisation tool.
File Sync & StorageDockerSyncthing has 89,827 GitHub stars, uses the MPL-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 244 commits in the last year; it replaces Google Drive and Dropbox, and appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it.
- 9
Caddy
Powerful, enterprise-ready, open source web server with automatic HTTPS.
Web Servers & Reverse ProxiesDockerCaddy has 78,501 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 406 commits in the last year; appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it.
- 10
Grafana
Dashboards and visualization for metrics, logs and traces from Prometheus, Loki and dozens of other sources.
Monitoring & Status PagesDockerGrafana has 77,561 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 11,934 commits in the last year; it replaces Datadog and Grafana Cloud, and appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it.
- 11
VaultwardenFeatured
Lightweight Bitwarden server API implementation written in Rust.
Password ManagersDockerVaultwarden has 69,807 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 217 commits in the last year; it replaces Bitwarden and 1Password, and appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it.
- 12
Prometheus
Metrics-based monitoring and alerting toolkit with a powerful query language, built for cloud-native systems.
Monitoring & Status PagesDockerPrometheus has 66,825 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 2,795 commits in the last year; it replaces Datadog and Grafana Cloud, and appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it.
Is n8n free?
Not by the OSI definition. n8n is source-available rather than open source: its code is public under the Sustainable Use License 1.0, which is not an OSI-approved open-source license. The Sustainable Use License allows use and changes for your own internal business or personal purposes, but not reselling the software or offering it as a paid hosted service. Check the license in the repository before using it commercially.
Can I self-host these apps with Docker?
Yes, all of them. n8n, Ollama and Open-WebUI publish Docker images, so you can run them on a VPS or home server with Docker Compose.
Are all of these apps open source?
10 of the 12 apps on this list are open source; 2 are source-available. Source-available licenses add conditions, such as limits on hosted or commercial use, so read them before you deploy.
Which of these apps is the most actively developed?
Home Assistant, with 21,554 commits in the last 12 months and a latest release, 2026.10.4, from October 2026. Activity is a good sign that bugs and security issues get fixed.
How is this list ranked?
Apps with an appsgit deploy guide come first, sorted by stars; the rest are ranked on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses and recent commits. Projects with fewer than 12 commits in the last 12 months rank below every more active project.
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