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10 top picks · 1 audience ranking

Best open source pastebins

The best open source pastebin is Karakeep (AGPL-3.0, 30,112 GitHub stars, Docker image). SilverBullet stands out for the most commits in the last 12 months (1,462), and PrivateBin stands out for a permissive Zlib license.

This page also breaks the picks down by team size and use: Karakeep leads for solo developers.

Updated · data from GitHub, refreshed daily

Top picks

  1. Rank 1:

    Karakeep

    karakeep-app/karakeep

    Bookmark-everything app with a touch of AI for the data hoarders out there.

    Active · last commit Oct 27, 2026

    Bookmarks & Link SharingTypeScriptDocker

    AI-nativeStands out for the most GitHub stars. Karakeep has 30,112 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 938 commits in the last year.

  2. Rank 2:

    SilverBullet

    silverbulletmd/silverbullet

    Note-taking application optimized for people with a hacker mindset.

    Active · last commit Oct 27, 2026

    Note-taking & EditorsTypeScriptDocker

    Stands out for the most commits in the last 12 months (1,462). SilverBullet has 6,406 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 1,462 commits in the last year.

  3. Rank 3:

    PrivateBin

    PrivateBin/PrivateBin

    Minimalist pastebin/discussion board where the server has zero knowledge of hosted data.

    Active · last commit Oct 28, 2026

    PastebinsPHP

    Stands out for a permissive Zlib license. PrivateBin has 8,717 GitHub stars, uses the Zlib license and had 805 commits in the last year; it replaces Pastebin.

At a glance

Open source pastebins compared

Ranked on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses and recent commits across the 21 apps in the pastebins category. Projects with fewer than 12 commits in the last 12 months rank below every more active project.

Top 10 picks compared, data as of Oct 28, 2026
AppStands out forLicenseGitHub starsCommits (12 mo)Last commitDocker image
Karakeepthe most GitHub starsAGPL-3.030,112938Oct 27, 2026Yes
SilverBulletthe most commits in the last 12 months (1,462)MIT6,4061,462Oct 27, 2026Yes
PrivateBina permissive Zlib licenseZlib8,717805Oct 28, 2026No
Password Pushera permissive Apache-2.0 licenseApache-2.03,2371,172Oct 27, 2026Yes
Yopassits Go codebaseApache-2.03,2101,219Oct 28, 2026Yes
Opengist–AGPL-3.03,406196Oct 27, 2026Yes
ByteStash–GPL-3.02,56977Oct 17, 2026Yes
Wastebin–MIT879186Oct 20, 2026Yes
paaster–AGPL-3.0568468Oct 26, 2026Yes
rustypaste–MIT1,213125Oct 26, 2026No

1 of 2 · 10 picks

Top picks

10 of the 21 apps in the pastebins category.

  1. 1

    Karakeep

    Bookmark-everything app with a touch of AI for the data hoarders out there.

    AI-nativeStands out for the most GitHub stars. Karakeep has 30,112 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 938 commits in the last year.

  2. 2

    SilverBullet

    Note-taking application optimized for people with a hacker mindset.

    Stands out for the most commits in the last 12 months (1,462). SilverBullet has 6,406 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 1,462 commits in the last year.

  3. 3

    PrivateBin

    Minimalist pastebin/discussion board where the server has zero knowledge of hosted data.

    Stands out for a permissive Zlib license. PrivateBin has 8,717 GitHub stars, uses the Zlib license and had 805 commits in the last year; it replaces Pastebin.

  4. 4

    Password Pusher

    Dead-simple application to securely communicate passwords (or text) over the web. Passwords automatically expire after a certain number of views and/or time has passed.

    Stands out for a permissive Apache-2.0 license. Password Pusher has 3,237 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 1,172 commits in the last year.

  5. 5

    Yopass

    Secure sharing of secrets, passwords and files.

    Stands out for its Go codebase. Yopass has 3,210 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 1,219 commits in the last year; it replaces Pastebin.

  6. 6

    Opengist

    Pastebin powered by Git.

    Opengist has 3,406 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 196 commits in the last year; it replaces Pastebin.

  7. 7

    ByteStash

    Pastebin and file storage service with a simple web interface. Supports syntax highlighting, optional user authentication and public sharing.

    ByteStash has 2,569 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 77 commits in the last year; it replaces Pastebin.

  8. 8

    Wastebin

    Lightweight, minimal and fast pastebin with an SQLite backend.

    Wastebin has 879 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 186 commits in the last year; it replaces Pastebin.

  9. 9

    paaster

    End-to-end encrypted pastebin built with the objective of simplicity.

    paaster has 568 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 468 commits in the last year.

  10. 10

    rustypaste

    Minimal file upload/pastebin service.

    rustypaste has 1,213 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license and had 125 commits in the last year; it replaces Pastebin.

2 of 2 · 5 picks

Which open source pastebin is best for solo developers?

For solo developers, Karakeep ranks first (AGPL-3.0, 30,112 GitHub stars), followed by SilverBullet and Password Pusher. Ranked for solo developers on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses and recent commits.

  1. 1

    Karakeep

    Bookmark-everything app with a touch of AI for the data hoarders out there.

    AI-nativeKarakeep has 30,112 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image, is written in TypeScript and had 938 commits in the last year. For solo developers it also scores on a Docker image, an open-source license and a commit in the last 90 days.

  2. 2

    SilverBullet

    Note-taking application optimized for people with a hacker mindset.

    SilverBullet has 6,406 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image, is written in TypeScript and had 1,462 commits in the last year. For solo developers it also scores on a Docker image, an open-source license and a commit in the last 90 days.

  3. 3

    Password Pusher

    Dead-simple application to securely communicate passwords (or text) over the web. Passwords automatically expire after a certain number of views and/or time has passed.

    Password Pusher has 3,237 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image, is written in Ruby and had 1,172 commits in the last year. For solo developers it also scores on a Docker image, an open-source license and a commit in the last 90 days.

  4. 4

    Yopass

    Secure sharing of secrets, passwords and files.

    Yopass has 3,210 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image, is written in Go and had 1,219 commits in the last year; it replaces Pastebin. For solo developers it also scores on a Docker image, an open-source license and a commit in the last 90 days.

  5. 5

    PrivateBin

    Minimalist pastebin/discussion board where the server has zero knowledge of hosted data.

    PrivateBin has 8,717 GitHub stars, uses the Zlib license, is written in PHP and had 805 commits in the last year; it replaces Pastebin. For solo developers it also scores on an open-source license and a commit in the last 90 days.

FAQ

Questions and answers

Still curious? Email info@appsgit.com.

Is Karakeep free?

Yes. Karakeep is open-source software released under the AGPL-3.0 license, so you can self-host it at no cost. You only pay for the server it runs on, and some projects also offer an optional paid cloud plan.

Can I self-host these pastebins with Docker?

Yes, 8 of the 10 picks. Karakeep, SilverBullet and Password Pusher publish Docker images, so you can run them on a VPS or home server with Docker Compose. The others install from their own packages or source; follow each project's install guide.

Are all of these pastebins open source?

All 10 apps on this list are open source. You can self-host and modify each one under its license.

Which of these pastebins is the most actively developed?

SilverBullet, with 1,462 commits in the last 12 months and a latest release, 2.12.1, from October 2026. Activity is a good sign that bugs and security issues get fixed.

How is this list ranked?

Ranked on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses and recent commits across the 21 apps in the pastebins category. Projects with fewer than 12 commits in the last 12 months rank below every more active project.

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