Top pick · highest health
DSpace
Turnkey repository application providing durable access to digital resources.
★ 1.1k 559 commits / 90d ⟳ today BSD-3-Clause
Category
Open source document management - institutional repository and digital library software
Institutional repository and digital library management software. Repoly tracks 6 open-source institutional repository tools, each scored nightly from its repository activity and ranked by that score alone. DSpace leads at 82/100 with 559 commits in the last 90 days and 1.1k stars, followed by Samvera Hyrax (79) and Fedora Commons Repository (65). 2 of the 6 score 70 or above, 0 publish a Docker image, and the median health is 60. Apache-2.0 is the most common licence, carried by 2 of them. The score weighs commits in the last 90 days, release recency, stars, archive status and Docker support; a low number means low measurable activity, not low quality, so a finished, stable tool can legitimately sit lower down.
updated Oct 2026 6 tools ★ 1.9k stars 0 with Docker median 60
Best for…
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Most starred
1,105 stars on GitHub, the largest community in the category.
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Most active
181 commits in the last 90 days, the fastest-moving codebase here.
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Most permissive
Apache-2.0 licence with health 65/100: the strongest option if you need to embed or fork commercially.
Ranked by health
Table view
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Samvera Hyrax
Front-end for the Samvera framework, which itself is a Ruby on Rails application for browsing and managing Fedora-based digital repositories.
★ 201 181 commits / 90d ⟳ yesterday Apache-2.0
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Fedora Commons Repository
Robust and modular repository system for the management and dissemination of digital content especially suited for digital libraries and archives, both for access and preservation.
★ 253 18 commits / 90d ⟳ today Apache-2.0
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InvenioRDM
Highly scalable turn-key research data management platform with a beautiful user experience.
★ 185 45 commits / 90d ⟳ yesterday MIT
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Islandora
Drupal module for browsing and managing Fedora-based digital repositories.
★ 158 4 commits / 90d ⟳ 2 months ago GPL-3.0
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EPrints
Digital document management system with a flexible metadata and workflow model primarily aimed at academic institutions.
★ 45 12 commits / 90d ⟳ 10 days ago GPL-3.0
| # | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DSpace | 1.1k | 559 | BSD-3-Clause | today | |
| 2 | Samvera Hyrax | 201 | 181 | Apache-2.0 | yesterday | |
| 3 | Fedora Commons Repository | 253 | 18 | Apache-2.0 | today | |
| 4 | InvenioRDM | 185 | 45 | MIT | yesterday | |
| 5 | Islandora | 158 | 4 | GPL-3.0 | 2 months ago | |
| 6 | EPrints | 45 | 12 | GPL-3.0 | 10 days ago |
How the digital library tools compare
DSpace edges Samvera Hyrax 82 to 79, and most of the difference is stars: 1.1k stars against 201 stars.
The most recent release is Samvera Hyrax hyrax-v5.3.1, published 28 days ago. InvenioRDM publishes no tagged releases, which costs up to 25 of the 100 points. None of the measured options scores under 40. By stack, Java (2), Perl (1) and PHP (1) are the most common. DSpace, Samvera Hyrax, Fedora Commons Repository and 1 more are permissively licensed; Islandora and EPrints are copyleft.
Document Management - Institutional Repository and Digital Library Software: common questions
What is the best open source digital library tool?
By Repoly's GitHub health score, DSpace at 82/100 (559 commits in 90 days, dspace-10.1 from 2 months ago). Samvera Hyrax is next at 79; DSpace's lead comes mostly from stars. The score measures maintenance, not features, so shortlist the top few and try them.
Which digital library tools are the most actively developed?
DSpace (559 commits in 90 days), Samvera Hyrax (181 commits in 90 days) and InvenioRDM (45 commits in 90 days). Commit activity is 35 of the 100 health points, the largest single term.
Which digital library tools can I run in Docker?
None of the 6 advertise Docker support, so plan for a native install.
Which digital library tools have a permissive licence?
4 of 6: DSpace (BSD-3-Clause), Samvera Hyrax (Apache-2.0), Fedora Commons Repository (Apache-2.0), InvenioRDM (MIT). 2 are copyleft.