ComfyUI vs Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111)
Short answer
ComfyUI: Node-based engine for generating images, video, 3D and audio with open models. Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111): Classic Gradio web interface for Stable Diffusion with txt2img, img2img, inpainting, upscaling and a large extension ecosystem. Both are in our Image & media generation category.
Choose ComfyUI if you want: fewer license conditions (Copyleft (GPL) vs Network copyleft (AGPL)) and an actively maintained project (Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) is stale).
Last updated · computed from each project's official docs and live GitHub data · sources
ComfyUI vs Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) side by side
| ComfyUI | Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Image & media generation | Image & media generation |
| What it is | Node-based engine for generating images, video, 3D and audio with open models. | Classic Gradio web interface for Stable Diffusion with txt2img, img2img, inpainting, upscaling and a large extension ecosystem. |
| License | GPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| License type | Copyleft (GPL) | Network copyleft (AGPL) |
| License conditions | Free to use internally and commercially. If you distribute a modified version, you must release its source under GPL-3.0. Each model has its own license; check before commercial use. | Free for internal and commercial use. If you modify it and let users interact with it over a network, you must offer them the modified source under AGPL-3.0. Each model checkpoint has its own license; check it before commercial use. |
| Status | Active | Stale (no commit in 180+ days) |
| GitHub stars | 145k | 165k |
| Last commit | Nov 2, 2026 | Jul 27, 2024 |
| Latest release | v0.43.0 | v1.10.1 |
| Minimum hardware | 8 GB RAM | Not published |
| Recommended hardware | Not published | Not published |
| RAM measured by us | Not tested yet | Not tested yet |
| GPU | The README claims it can run even the largest open models on as little as 4 GB VRAM plus 8 GB RAM using weight streaming. NVIDIA, AMD, Intel, Apple Silicon and Ascend are supported. | NVIDIA GPUs are the recommended path; AMD GPUs, Intel CPUs/GPUs, Apple Silicon and Ascend NPUs have separate install guides. With little VRAM use --medvram or --lowvram; without enough VRAM it may refuse to launch or run out of memory. |
| Est. server cost | GPU server (not estimated) | GPU server (not estimated) |
| Deploy method | Desktop app or manual install | Launch script (Linux) |
| Known gotchas | 2 listed | 4 listed |
| Telemetry | Not documented | Not documented |
| Calls home by default | No (documented) | Not documented |
| SSO (OIDC / SAML / LDAP) | Not documented | Not documented |
| Audit log | Not documented | Not documented |
| RBAC | Not documented | Not documented |
| Details | Full ComfyUI guide → | Full Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) guide → |
Key differences
- License: ComfyUI: GPL-3.0 (Copyleft (GPL)). Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111): AGPL-3.0 (Network copyleft (AGPL)).
- Official hardware: ComfyUI: minimum 8 GB RAM. Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111): not published.
- Deploy: ComfyUI: Desktop app or manual install · Desktop app or manual install. Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111): Launch script (Linux) · Launch script (Linux).
- Status: ComfyUI: Active. Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111): Stale (no commit in 180+ days).
- GitHub stars: ComfyUI: 145k. Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111): 165k.
- Last commit: ComfyUI: Nov 2, 2026. Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111): Jul 27, 2024.
- Latest release: ComfyUI: v0.43.0 (Oct 27, 2026). Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111): v1.10.1 (Feb 9, 2025).
Same for both: Category: Image & media generation; GPU: needed for practical use; Est. server cost: GPU server (not estimated).
ComfyUI vs Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111): FAQ
ComfyUI or Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111): which should a small business choose?
Choose ComfyUI if you want: fewer license conditions (Copyleft (GPL) vs Network copyleft (AGPL)) and an actively maintained project (Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) is stale).
Which is cheaper to self-host, ComfyUI or Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111)?
ComfyUI: GPU server (not estimated). Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111): GPU server (not estimated). Our estimate is the cheapest Hetzner Cloud plan that meets each project's official RAM and vCPU figure; it covers the server only.
How much hardware do ComfyUI and Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) need?
ComfyUI: minimum 8 GB RAM. Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111): not published. ComfyUI and Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) needs a GPU for practical use.
What is the license difference between ComfyUI and Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111)?
ComfyUI: GPL-3.0 (Copyleft (GPL)). Free to use internally and commercially. If you distribute a modified version, you must release its source under GPL-3.0. Each model has its own license; check before commercial use. Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111): AGPL-3.0 (Network copyleft (AGPL)). Free for internal and commercial use. If you modify it and let users interact with it over a network, you must offer them the modified source under AGPL-3.0. Each model checkpoint has its own license; check it before commercial use. This is a summary, not legal advice.
Is ComfyUI or Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) more actively maintained?
ComfyUI: Active, last commit Nov 2, 2026. Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111): Stale (no commit in 180+ days), last commit Jul 27, 2024. GitHub data refreshed Nov 2, 2026.
Which is easier to deploy, ComfyUI or Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111)?
ComfyUI installs via Desktop app or manual install (Desktop app or manual install); Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) via Launch script (Linux) (Launch script (Linux)). ComfyUI lists 2 known gotchas and Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) lists 4; see each app page.
Related
- ComfyUI self-hosting guide · Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) self-hosting guide
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- Rembg vs Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111)
- Add a third app in the interactive comparison
Sources
- ComfyUI GitHub repository: github.com/Comfy-Org/ComfyUI
- ComfyUI documentation, ComfyUI hardware requirements, ComfyUI deploy instructions: github.com/Comfy-Org/ComfyUI#readme
- ComfyUI license: github.com/Comfy-Org/ComfyUI/blob/master/LICENSE
- Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) GitHub repository: github.com/AUTOMATIC1111/stable-diffusion-webui
- Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) documentation: github.com/AUTOMATIC1111/stable-diffusion-webui/wiki
- Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) license: github.com/AUTOMATIC1111/stable-diffusion-webui/blob/master/LICENSE.txt
- Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) hardware requirements: github.com/AUTOMATIC1111/stable-diffusion-webui/wiki/Install-and-Run-on-NVidia-GPUs
- Stable Diffusion web UI (AUTOMATIC1111) deploy instructions: github.com/AUTOMATIC1111/stable-diffusion-webui#automatic-installation-on-linux
- Hetzner Cloud pricing used for cost estimates (read 2026-11-02): www.hetzner.com/cloud/regular-performance
- GitHub REST API (stars, commits, releases): docs.github.com/en/rest
Every value is generated from the same verified data as the app pages. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.