Paperless-ngx vs Unstract
Short answer
Paperless-ngx: Document management system that OCRs scans into a searchable archive, auto-tags them and adds optional LLM suggestions and chat. Unstract: No-code LLM platform that turns invoices, forms and other documents into structured JSON. Both are in our Document processing category.
Choose Paperless-ngx if you want: fewer license conditions (Copyleft (GPL) vs Network copyleft (AGPL)) and larger community (47.3k vs 7.4k GitHub stars).
Paperless-ngx publishes no official RAM figure, so we cannot compare hosting cost directly.
Last updated · computed from each project's official docs and live GitHub data · sources
Paperless-ngx vs Unstract side by side
| Paperless-ngx | Unstract | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Document processing | Document processing |
| What it is | Document management system that OCRs scans into a searchable archive, auto-tags them and adds optional LLM suggestions and chat. | No-code LLM platform that turns invoices, forms and other documents into structured JSON. |
| License | GPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| License type | Copyleft (GPL) | Network copyleft (AGPL) |
| License conditions | Free for internal and commercial use. If you distribute a modified version you must release it under GPL-3.0; running it for your own team is not distribution. | Free for internal and commercial use. If you modify Unstract and let users interact with it over a network, you must offer them the modified source code under AGPL-3.0. |
| Status | Active | Active |
| GitHub stars | 47.3k | 7.4k |
| Last commit | Oct 29, 2026 | Oct 30, 2026 |
| Latest release | v3.4.0 | v0.199.0 |
| Minimum hardware | Not published | 8 GB RAM |
| Recommended hardware | Not published | Not published |
| RAM measured by us | Not tested yet | Not tested yet |
| GPU | No. OCR and the built-in classifier run on CPU; LLM features call the provider you configure. | Not required by the platform itself; LLMs are reached through the provider you configure (cloud API or a local server such as Ollama). |
| Est. server cost | Not estimated | from €35.99/mo |
| Deploy method | Docker Compose (official install script) | Docker Compose (run-platform.sh) |
| Known gotchas | 4 listed | 4 listed |
| Telemetry | Not documented | On by default |
| Calls home by default | Not documented | Not documented |
| SSO (OIDC / SAML / LDAP) | Free (OIDC free) | Paid / enterprise only (OIDC paid · SAML paid) |
| Audit log | Yes, free | Not documented |
| RBAC | Not documented | Not documented |
| Details | Full Paperless-ngx guide → | Full Unstract guide → |
Key differences
- License: Paperless-ngx: GPL-3.0 (Copyleft (GPL)). Unstract: AGPL-3.0 (Network copyleft (AGPL)).
- Official hardware: Paperless-ngx: not published. Unstract: minimum 8 GB RAM.
- Est. server cost: Paperless-ngx: not estimated (no official RAM figure). Unstract: from €35.99/mo.
- Deploy: Paperless-ngx: Docker Compose (official install script) · multi-container stack. Unstract: Docker Compose (run-platform.sh) · multi-container stack.
- GitHub stars: Paperless-ngx: 47.3k. Unstract: 7.4k.
- Last commit: Paperless-ngx: Oct 29, 2026. Unstract: Oct 30, 2026.
- Latest release: Paperless-ngx: v3.4.0 (Oct 29, 2026). Unstract: v0.199.0 (Oct 29, 2026).
Same for both: Category: Document processing; GPU: optional / see notes; Status: Active.
Paperless-ngx vs Unstract: FAQ
Paperless-ngx or Unstract: which should a small business choose?
Choose Paperless-ngx if you want: fewer license conditions (Copyleft (GPL) vs Network copyleft (AGPL)) and larger community (47.3k vs 7.4k GitHub stars). Paperless-ngx publishes no official RAM figure, so we cannot compare hosting cost directly.
Which is cheaper to self-host, Paperless-ngx or Unstract?
Paperless-ngx: not estimated (no official RAM figure). Unstract: from €35.99/mo. 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 Paperless-ngx and Unstract need?
Paperless-ngx: not published. Unstract: minimum 8 GB RAM.
What is the license difference between Paperless-ngx and Unstract?
Paperless-ngx: GPL-3.0 (Copyleft (GPL)). Free for internal and commercial use. If you distribute a modified version you must release it under GPL-3.0; running it for your own team is not distribution. Unstract: AGPL-3.0 (Network copyleft (AGPL)). Free for internal and commercial use. If you modify Unstract and let users interact with it over a network, you must offer them the modified source code under AGPL-3.0. This is a summary, not legal advice.
Is Paperless-ngx or Unstract more actively maintained?
Paperless-ngx: Active, last commit Oct 29, 2026. Unstract: Active, last commit Oct 30, 2026. GitHub data refreshed Oct 30, 2026.
Which is easier to deploy, Paperless-ngx or Unstract?
Paperless-ngx installs via Docker Compose (official install script) (multi-container stack); Unstract via Docker Compose (run-platform.sh) (multi-container stack). Paperless-ngx lists 4 known gotchas and Unstract lists 4; see each app page.
Related
- Paperless-ngx self-hosting guide · Unstract self-hosting guide
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- All Unstract alternatives, ranked
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- Add a third app in the interactive comparison
Sources
- Paperless-ngx GitHub repository: github.com/paperless-ngx/paperless-ngx
- Paperless-ngx documentation, Paperless-ngx deploy instructions: github.com/paperless-ngx/paperless-ngx/blob/main/docs/setup.md
- Paperless-ngx license: github.com/paperless-ngx/paperless-ngx/blob/dev/LICENSE
- Paperless-ngx hardware requirements: github.com/paperless-ngx/paperless-ngx/blob/main/docs/faq.md
- Unstract GitHub repository: github.com/Zipstack/unstract
- Unstract documentation: docs.unstract.com/unstract/unstract_platform/quick_start
- Unstract license: github.com/Zipstack/unstract/blob/main/LICENSE
- Unstract hardware requirements, Unstract deploy instructions: github.com/Zipstack/unstract#readme
- Hetzner Cloud pricing used for cost estimates (read 2026-10-25): 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.