Top pick · highest health
slskd
A modern client-server application for the Soulseek file sharing network.
★ 4.2k 252 commits / 90d ⟳ yesterday AGPL-3.0 Docker
Category
Open source file transfer - peer-to-peer filesharing
Peer-to-peer file sharing is the distribution and sharing of digital media using peer-to-peer (P2P) networking technology. 8 self-hosted peer-to-peer filesharing tools are listed here, ordered purely by a repository health score that Repoly recomputes nightly. slskd leads at 95/100 with 252 commits in the last 90 days and 4.2k stars, followed by Webtor (91) and qBittorrent (88). 4 of the 8 score 70 or above, 4 publish a Docker image, and the median health is 71. MIT is the most common licence, carried by 4 of them. Between them they stand in for Wayback Machine and WeTransfer. 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 8 tools ★ 68k stars 4 with Docker median 71
Best for…
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Most starred
41,229 stars on GitHub, the largest community in the category.
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Most active
252 commits in the last 90 days, the fastest-moving codebase here.
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Most permissive
MIT licence with health 91/100: the strongest option if you need to embed or fork commercially.
Ranked by health
Table view
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Webtor
Web-based torrent client with instant audio/video streaming.
★ 713 251 commits / 90d ⟳ today MIT Docker
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qBittorrent
Free cross-platform bittorrent client with a feature rich Web UI for remote access.
★ 41k 111 commits / 90d ⟳ 4 days ago GPL-2.0
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bittorrent-tracker
Simple, robust, BitTorrent tracker (client and server) implementation.
★ 1.9k 6 commits / 90d ⟳ 2 days ago MIT
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PrivyDrop
Simple and user-friendly, breakpoint-resumable peer-to-peer text, image, and file transfer tool based on WebRTC.
★ 145 1 commits / 90d ⟳ 20 days ago MIT Docker
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bitmagnet
BitTorrent indexer, DHT crawler, content classifier and torrent search engine with web UI, GraphQL API and Servarr stack integration.
★ 4.4k 0 commits / 90d ⟳ 3 months ago MIT Docker
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| # | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | slskd Docker | 4.2k | 252 | AGPL-3.0 | yesterday | |
| 2 | Webtor Docker | 713 | 251 | MIT | today | |
| 3 | qBittorrent | 41k | 111 | GPL-2.0 | 4 days ago | |
| 4 | Transmission | 15k | 30 | GPL-3.0 | today | |
| 5 | bittorrent-tracker | 1.9k | 6 | MIT | 2 days ago | |
| 6 | PrivyDrop Docker | 145 | 1 | MIT | 20 days ago | |
| 7 | bitmagnet Docker | 4.4k | 0 | MIT | 3 months ago | |
| 8 | Deluge | 0 | 0 | GPL-3.0 | unknown |
How the peer-to-peer filesharing tools compare
slskd edges Webtor 95 to 91, and most of the difference is stars: 4.2k stars against 713 stars. qBittorrent has the largest following at 41k stars, yet ranks #3 of 8, held back mostly by Docker support (no Docker image).
The most recent release is Transmission 4.1.4, published 6 days ago. None of the measured options scores under 40. By stack, C++ (2), Nodejs (2) and C# (1) are the most common. Webtor, bittorrent-tracker, PrivyDrop and 1 more are permissively licensed; slskd, qBittorrent, Transmission and 1 more are copyleft. Deluge is not hosted on a forge Repoly can read, so it has no measured score yet.
File Transfer - Peer-to-peer Filesharing: common questions
What is the best open source peer-to-peer filesharing tool?
By Repoly's GitHub health score, slskd at 95/100 (252 commits in 90 days, 0.26.2 from 7 days ago). Webtor is next at 91; slskd's lead comes mostly from stars. The score measures maintenance, not features, so shortlist the top few and try them.
Which peer-to-peer filesharing tools are the most actively developed?
slskd (252 commits in 90 days), Webtor (251 commits in 90 days) and qBittorrent (111 commits in 90 days). Commit activity is 35 of the 100 health points, the largest single term.
Which peer-to-peer filesharing tools can I run in Docker?
4 of 8 publish a Docker image or Compose file, led by slskd, Webtor, PrivyDrop and bitmagnet.
Which peer-to-peer filesharing tools have a permissive licence?
4 of 8: Webtor (MIT), bittorrent-tracker (MIT), PrivyDrop (MIT), bitmagnet (MIT). 4 are copyleft.
Which paid products can open source peer-to-peer filesharing tools replace?
Wayback Machine (bitmagnet ranks highest here) and WeTransfer (PrivyDrop ranks highest here).
