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Hydrus Network vs Damselfly: catalog facts
Hydrus Network	Damselfly
Free Free, with source published on GitHub.	Free Free to use; the developer accepts donations through Buy Me a Coffee.
Windows, macOS, Linux, Self-hosted	Web, Self-hosted
Tag-based search across very large collections Imports files and tags from disk and websites	Works on an existing folder-based photo collection Face, object detection and image classification built in
Takes time to learn compared with ordinary photo libraries Interface is dense and built for power users	Full facial recognition depends on an Azure Face Services account Needs a server to run
Downloadable app, Self-hosted	Self-hosted
Closed source	Closed source
License: WTFPL	License not stated
No account needed	Not stated if an account is needed
Works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 24, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 23, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.