--- title: "moby vs unstract" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/moby-moby-vs-zipstack-unstract" tools: ["moby-moby", "zipstack-unstract"] --- # moby vs unstract *GraphCanon updated Jul 11, 2026* ## Verdict Pick moby when moby is primarily Go; unstract is Python; pick unstract when unstract is primarily Python; moby is Go. [moby](https://mobyproject.org/) reports 72k GitHub stars, 19k forks, and 3.8k open issues, last pushed Jul 10, 2026. [unstract](https://unstract.com) has 6.7k stars, 633 forks, and 84 open issues, last pushed Jul 11, 2026. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [moby's repository](https://github.com/moby/moby) and [unstract's repository](https://github.com/Zipstack/unstract). | | [moby](/tools/moby-moby.md) | [unstract](/tools/zipstack-unstract.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | The Moby Project - a collaborative project for the container ecosystem to assemble container-based systems | LLM-Driven Extraction of Unstructured Data — Built for API Deployments & ETL Pipeline Workflows | | Stars | 71,899 | 6,696 | | Forks | 19,126 | 633 | | Open issues | 3,821 | 84 | | Language | Go | Python | | Adopt for | - | - | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | Apache-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 | | Categories | LLM Frameworks, Inference & Serving, Developer Tools | AI Agents, LLM Frameworks, Inference & Serving | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [moby](/tools/moby-moby.md) | [unstract](/tools/zipstack-unstract.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Days since push | 1d | 0d | | Open issues (now) | 3.8k | 84 | | Security scan | No criticals | No MCP manifest | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/moby-moby/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/zipstack-unstract/trust.md) | ## Choose when ### Choose moby if… - moby is primarily Go; unstract is Python. - License: moby is Apache-2.0, unstract is AGPL-3.0. - Tags unique to moby: go, docker, golang, containers. - Also covers Developer Tools. - moby ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment. ### Choose unstract if… - unstract is primarily Python; moby is Go. - License: unstract is AGPL-3.0, moby is Apache-2.0. - Tags unique to unstract: mcp-server, data-engineering, llm, json-extraction. - Also covers AI Agents. ## When NOT to use moby - LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. - Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic. - Developer Tools: A gateway is overkill when you're pinned to a single provider and model. ## When NOT to use unstract - AI Agents: Don't use an agent loop when a deterministic workflow would do; agents add latency, cost, and non-determinism. - LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. - Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic. ## Common questions ### What is the difference between moby and unstract? moby: The Moby Project - a collaborative project for the container ecosystem to assemble container-based systems. unstract: LLM-Driven Extraction of Unstructured Data — Built for API Deployments & ETL Pipeline Workflows. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories. ### When should I choose moby over unstract? Choose moby over unstract when moby is primarily Go; unstract is Python; License: moby is Apache-2.0, unstract is AGPL-3.0; Tags unique to moby: go, docker, golang, containers; Also covers Developer Tools; moby ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment. ### When should I choose unstract over moby? Choose unstract over moby when unstract is primarily Python; moby is Go; License: unstract is AGPL-3.0, moby is Apache-2.0; Tags unique to unstract: mcp-server, data-engineering, llm, json-extraction; Also covers AI Agents. ### When should I avoid moby? LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic. Developer Tools: A gateway is overkill when you're pinned to a single provider and model. ### When should I avoid unstract? AI Agents: Don't use an agent loop when a deterministic workflow would do; agents add latency, cost, and non-determinism. LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic. ### Is moby or unstract more popular on GitHub? moby has more GitHub stars (71,899 vs 6,696). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are moby and unstract open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (moby: Apache-2.0, unstract: AGPL-3.0). ### Where can I find alternatives to moby or unstract? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [moby alternatives](/tools/moby-moby/alternatives) and [unstract alternatives](/tools/zipstack-unstract/alternatives) ([moby markdown twin](/tools/moby-moby/alternatives.md), [unstract markdown twin](/tools/zipstack-unstract/alternatives.md)), ranked by typed relationship edges rather than popularity votes. ### Is there a machine-readable version of this comparison? Yes. The markdown twin at [this comparison](/compare/moby-moby-vs-zipstack-unstract.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, moby or unstract? moby: Very active. unstract: Very active. Compare maintenance labels, days since push, and release cadence in the trust section below - stars alone do not measure maintenance. ### Where are the full trust reports for moby and unstract? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [moby trust report](/tools/moby-moby/trust); [unstract trust report](/tools/zipstack-unstract/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=moby-moby`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=moby-moby) - LLM index: [/llms.txt](/llms.txt) - Full corpus: [/llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt) _GraphCanon - The knowledge graph for AI development. https://www.graphcanon.com/_