AList vs Filestash
| Tagline | File list program supporting multiple storages, with WebDAV and web UI | Web file manager connecting to FTP, SFTP, WebDAV, S3, Git, Dropbox, and Google Drive |
| Category | File Storage & Sync | File Storage & Sync |
| Replaces | Google Drive, Dropbox | Dropbox, Google Drive, Box |
| GitHub stars | 50k | 14k |
| Language | Go | Docker |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Self-host difficulty | 2/5 Easy | 2/5 Easy |
| Deploy options | Docker Manual | Docker Manual |
| Managed hosting | ||
| Last updated | 13 days ago | 3 days ago |
| View repo | View repo |
Where each falls short
The honest trade-offs — what you give up with each, versus the proprietary tools they replace.
AList
- Primarily a read/list and aggregation layer; not a true two-way sync engine like Dropbox
- No native desktop/mobile sync clients (relies on WebDAV)
- Limited collaboration, versioning, and team permission features
- Documentation is partly Chinese-first and can lag for some backends
Filestash
- Advanced features (video transcoding, full-text search) are locked behind a commercial license
- No real-time collaborative editing; file editing is single-user
- No desktop sync client; all interaction is through the web interface
- User and permission management is basic; not suitable as a primary cloud storage replacement for teams
Bottom line
Both are a similar lift to self-host; choose AList for the larger community and ecosystem. Filestash has seen more recent development. Open each guide below for deploy steps and the full feature gap.
Filestash
Web file manager connecting to FTP, SFTP, WebDAV, S3, Git, Dropbox, and Google Drive