Comparison of BitTorrent clients

The following is a general comparison of BitTorrent clients, which are computer programs designed for peer-to-peer file sharing using the BitTorrent protocol.^[1]

The BitTorrent protocol coordinates segmented file transfer among peers connected in a swarm. A BitTorrent client enables a user to exchange data as a peer in one or more swarms. Because BitTorrent is a peer-to-peer communications protocol that does not need a server, the BitTorrent definition of client differs from the conventional meaning expressed in the client–server model.^[1]

Bram Cohen, author of the BitTorrent protocol, made the first BitTorrent client, which he also called BitTorrent, and published it in July 2001.^[2]

Many BitTorrent programs are open-source software; others are freeware, adware or shareware. Some download managers, such as FlashGet and GetRight, are BitTorrent-ready. Opera 12, a web browser, can also transfer files via BitTorrent.

In 2013 Thunder Networking Technologies publicly revealed that some of their employees surreptitiously distributed a Trojan horse with certain releases of Xunlei, the company's BitTorrent-ready download manager.^[3][4] Xunlei is included in the comparison tables.

Applications

General

Name	Developer	Platform	Latest release		License	Notes
			Version	Date
BiglyBT	Bigly Software	Linux	3.7.0.0[5]	30 September 2024	GPL-2.0-or-later
		macOS
		Windows
		Android	1.3.3[6]	22 September 2023
BitComet	BitComet Development Group	macOS	2.10[7]	2024-10-09	Proprietary, Adware	[a]
		Windows	2.10[7]	2024-10-09
BitLord	House of Life	macOS	2.4.6-348	2019-10-24	Proprietary, Adware	[b]
		Windows	2.4.6-358[8][9]	2022-08-26
BitTorrent	BitTorrent	Android	8.2.1[10]	2024-03-20	Proprietary, Adware
		macOS	7.4.3.45549[11]	2020-05-20
		Windows	7.11.0.46555[12]	2022-11-22
Deluge	various	BSD	2.1.1[13]	2022-07-10	GPL-3.0-or-later[14]
		Linux
		macOS
		Solaris
		Windows
FlashGet	Trend Media	Windows	3.7.0.1220[15]	2013-05-17	Proprietary	[c]
Free Download Manager	alervd	Android	6.19.0.5156[16]	2023-03-13	Proprietary
		Linux
		macOS
		Windows
FrostWire	The FrostWire Project	Android	2.9.4[17]	2024-12-26	GPL-3.0-or-later
		Linux	6.13.4-build-324[18]	2024-10-16
		macOS	6.13.4-build-324[18]	2024-10-16
		Windows	6.13.4-build-324[18]	2024-10-16
KGet	KDE	BSD	24.12.3[19]	2025-03-06	GPL-2.0-or-later
		Linux
KTorrent	Joris Guisson, Ivan Vasić	BSD	23.08.3[20][21]	2023-11-09	GPL-2.0-or-later
		Linux
		macOS
Lftp	Alexander V. Lukya	BSD	4.9.3[22]	2024-11-08	GPL-3.0-or-later
		Linux
		macOS
		Windows
LimeWire	Lime Wire LLC	Linux	5.5.16	2010-10-26	GPL-2.0-or-later
		macOS
		Windows
Miro	Participatory Culture Foundation	Linux	6.0[23]	2013-04-05	GPL-2.0-or-later
		macOS
		Windows
MLDonkey	MLDonkey Project	BSD	3.2.1[24]	2024-08-20	GPL-2.0-or-later
		Linux
		macOS
		MorphOS
		Solaris
		Windows
μTorrent	BitTorrent	Android	8.2.2[25]	2024-03-21	Proprietary, Adware	[d]
		macOS	1.8.7.45548[27]	2020-01-30
		Windows	3.6.0.47006[28]	2024-01-11
Opera 12	Opera Software	FreeBSD	12.16		Proprietary	[e]
		Linux
		macOS
		Solaris
		Windows	12.17
qBittorrent	Christophe Dumez	BSD	5.0.5[29]	2025-04-13	GPL-2.0-or-later[14]
		Linux
		Haiku
		macOS
		OS/2
		Windows
rTorrent	Jari Sundell	BSD			GPL-2.0-or-later[14]	[f]
		Linux
		macOS
		Solaris
		Windows
Robert	Sponge, co-developer of I2P	BSD	0.0.40	2013	GPL
		Linux
		macOS
		Windows
Shareaza	Shareaza Development Team	Windows	2.7.10.2[30]	2017-09-18	GPL-2.0-or-later	[g]
Tixati	Kevin Hearn	Linux	3.31[31]	2024-12-11	Proprietary	[h]
		Windows
Tonido	CodeLathe	BSD	14.90.0.34030	2017-01-13	Proprietary
		Linux
		macOS
		Windows
Transmission	various	BSD	4.0.6[32]	2024-05-30	GPL-2.0-only or GPL-3.0-only[33][14] MIT[34]
		Linux
		macOS
		OpenWrt
		Solaris
		Windows
Tribler	The Tribler Team	Linux	8.0.7[35]	2024-12-16	GPL-3.0-only	[i]
		macOS
		Windows
Vuze[j]	Vuze	Android	5.7.6.0[37]	2017-11-02	Proprietary (platform) GPL-2.0-or-later (core engine) Adware	[k]
		Linux
		macOS
		Windows
Xunlei	Thunder Networking Technologies	Android	7.53.0.8245[38]	2022-10-11	Proprietary, Adware
		iOS	1.5.8[39]	2022-09-29
		macOS	5.0.2.65551[40]	2022-06-16
		Windows
Name	Developer	Platform	Latest release		License	Notes
			Version	Date

Operating system support

BitTorrent client	Windows	macOS	GNU/Linux	BSD	iOS	Android	Other
BiglyBT	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No
BitComet	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No	No
BitLord	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No	No
BitTorrent	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	Yes[41]	No
Deluge	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	Solaris
FlashGet	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No
Free Download Manager	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	No
Frostwire	Yes[42]	Yes[42]	Yes[42]	Yes[42]	No[42]	Yes[42]	Unix-like[42] z/OS[43] Solaris OS/2 eComStation ArcaOS[44]
KGet	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
KTorrent	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
Lftp	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
LimeWire	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes [specify]
Miro	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
MLDonkey	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	Solaris MorphOS
μTorrent	Yes	Yes	Web	No	No	Yes[45]	No
Opera 12	Yes[l]	Yes	Yes[l]	Yes[l]	No	Yes[citation needed]	Solaris
qBittorrent	Yes[46]	Yes[46]	Yes[46]	Yes[46]	No[46]	No[47]	OS/2[m] FreeBSD Haiku[46]
Robert	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
rTorrent	Yes[n]	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	Solaris
Shareaza	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No
Tixati	Yes	No	Yes	No	No	No	No
Tonido	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
Transmission	Yes [l]	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes[o]	Yes	Solaris
Tribler	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
Vuze	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes[49]	No
Xunlei	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes[citation needed]	No
Name	Windows	macOS	GNU/Linux	BSD	iOS	Android	Other

Interface and programming

BitTorrent client	GUI	Remote	CLI	Other	Programming language	Based on	IPv6	μTP
BiglyBT	Yes	Yes	No[p]	Telnet, XML over HTTP remote control API	Java, SWT	Vuze[j]	Yes	Yes
BitComet	Yes	Yes	Partial[51]	No	C++	-	Yes	No
BitLord	Yes	No	No	No	Python, C++	libtorrent (Rasterbar)	Yes	No
BitTorrent 5, Mainline	Yes	No	Partial	No	Python	-	No	No
Deluge	Yes	Yes	Yes	Daemon	Python, C++	libtorrent (Rasterbar)	Yes	Yes[52]
FlashGet	Yes	No	No	No	?	?	No	No
Free Download Manager	Yes	Yes	Partial	No	C++	libtorrent (Rasterbar)	No	No
Frostwire	Yes	No	No	No	Java	libtorrent (Rasterbar)	No	Yes[53]
KGet	Yes	Yes	Partial[q]	No	C++	-	Yes	No
KTorrent	Yes	Yes	Partial	No	C++	-	Yes	Yes[54]
lftp	No	No	Yes	No	C++	-	Yes	No
LimeWire	Yes	No	No	No	Java	libtorrent (Rasterbar)	No	No
Miro	Yes	No	No	No	C++	libtorrent (Rasterbar)	No	No
MLDonkey	No	Third Party[55]	Partial	Telnet	OCaml	-	No	No
μTorrent	Yes	Yes	No[56]	RESTful Web API[57]	C++[58]	-	Yes[59]	Yes[60]
Opera 12	Yes	No	No	No	C++	-	Yes	No
qBittorrent	Yes	Yes	Partial	No	Python, C++	libtorrent (Rasterbar)	Yes	Yes[61]
rTorrent	No	Third Party	Yes	SCGI	C++	libTorrent (Rakshasa)	Yes[62]	No
Shareaza	Yes	Yes	Partial	No	C++	-	No	No
Tixati	Yes	Yes	No	Web interface	C++	-	Yes	Yes[63]
Tonido	No	Yes	No	No	C++	libtorrent (Rasterbar)	No	No
Transmission	Yes	Yes	Yes	Daemon, JSON-RPC over HTTP remote control API	C++ (rewritten from C), Objective-C	libtransmission	Yes	Yes[64]
Tribler	Yes	Partial	Partial	No	Python, C++	libtorrent (Rasterbar)	No	Yes
Vuze[j]	Yes	Yes	Partial	Telnet, XML over HTTP remote control API	Java, SWT	-	Yes	Yes[65]
Xunlei	Yes	No	No	remote control over internet[66]	C++	-	No	No
BitTorrent client	GUI	Web	CLI	Other	Programming language	Based on	IPv6	μTP

Features I

BitTorrent client	Protocol version	Magnet URI (BEP 9)	Preload Magnet metadata[r] (BEP 9)	Super-seeding (BEP 16)	Embedded tracker	UPnP[67]	NAT Port Mapping Protocol	NAT traversal[68] (BEP 55)	DHT protocol[69] (BEP 5)	Peer exchange(PEX) (BEP 11)	Encryption	UDP tracker (BEP 15)	LPD (BEP 14)	Proxy server
BiglyBT	1, 2	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	HTTP(S) SOCKS4-4a-5
BitComet	1, 2	Yes	No	Yes	Separate download	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	HTTP 1.1, SOCKS4-4a-5
BitLord	1	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	HTTP 1.1, SOCKS4-4a-5
BitTorrent 5, Mainline	1	No	No	No	Yes[s]	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes
Deluge	1	Yes	Partial[t]	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	HTTP(S), SOCKS4-5
FlashGet	1	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	No	No	No
Free Download Manager	1	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No
KTorrent	1	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Partial	HTTP, SOCKS4-5
LimeWire	1	Partial	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No
MLDonkey	1	Yes[70]	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	No	No
μTorrent	1	Yes	Yes[71]	Yes[72]	Yes[73]	Yes[74]	Yes	Yes[75]	Yes[u]	Yes[v]	Yes[76]	Yes	Yes[77]	HTTP(S), SOCKS4-5
Opera 12	1	No	No	No	Yes[78]	No	No	No	No	Yes[79]	No	No	No	No
qBittorrent	1, 2[80]	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	HTTP(S), SOCKS4-5[w]
rTorrent	1	Yes[81]	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No[82]	No
Shareaza	1	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes[x]	Yes	No	Yes[y]	No	No
Tixati	1, 2	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	[z]
Tonido	1	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No	No
Transmission	1[83]	Yes	Patch available[84][85][86]	No	No	Yes	Yes	No[87]	Yes	Yes[aa]	Yes	Yes	Yes	No[88]
Tribler	1	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	[ab]
Vuze[j]	1	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes[ac]	Yes[ad]	Yes	Yes	Yes	Plugin	HTTP(S)?, SOCKS4-4a-5
Xunlei	1	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	HTTP, SOCKS5, FTP
BitTorrent client	Protocol version	Magnet URI	Preload Magnet metadata	Super-seeding	Embedded tracker	UPnP	NAT Port Mapping Protocol	NAT traversal	DHT	Peer exchange	Encryption	UDP tracker	LPD	Proxy server

Features II

BitTorrent client	Cache[ae]	Hash Web seeding	HTTP Web seeding[ambiguous]	Broad-catching (RSS) (BEP 36)	Prioritization	Selective downloads (BEP 53)	Sequential downloading	SOCKS	Tracker exchange (BEP 7)	Remote control via web	Search engine (BEP 18)	Auto updates	Reviews and Comments
BiglyBT	Yes		Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes		Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
BitComet	Yes	No	Yes[89]	Beta	Yes	Yes	Yes[af]	Yes	No	Yes	Partial[ag]	Yes	No
BitLord	Yes	No	Partial [ah][ai]	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	No	Partial[ag]	Yes	No
BitTorrent 5, Mainline	No	Yes	Partial [ai]	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	No
Deluge	Yes	Yes	Partial [ah]	Plugin	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	via PMS	No
FlashGet	No	No		No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No
Free Download Manager	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	No	Optional	No
KTorrent	Yes	Yes		Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Partial[ag]	via PMS	No
LimeWire	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	No
MLDonkey	Yes	No		3rd party bash script	Yes	No	No	No[90]	No	Yes	Partial[ag]	via PMS	No
μTorrent	Yes	Yes[91]	Partial [ai]	Yes[92]	Yes[93]	Yes	Yes[aj]	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Opera 12	No	No		Yes[ak]	No	No	No	No	No	No	Partial[ag]	Yes[al]	No
qBittorrent	Yes	Yes	Partial [ah]	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Partial[am]	Yes	Yes	via PMS	No
rTorrent	Partial	No	No	3rd party utility [94]	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	No	via PMS	No
Shareaza	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes[an]	in mod client	No	Yes [ao][95][ap]	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Tixati	Yes	Yes	Yes[96]	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No
Tonido	No	No		No	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	No
Transmission	Yes	No	Partial [ai][aq]	No	Yes	No[97]	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	No
Tribler	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	Partial	Yes (DHT)[98]	Yes	No
Vuze[j]	Yes		Yes[99]	Yes	Yes	Yes	in paid version [100]	Yes	No	Plugin[ar]	Yes	Yes	Yes[101]
Xunlei	Yes	No		Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes			Yes	No	Yes	No
BitTorrent client	Cache	Hash Web seeding	HTTP Web seeding	Broad-catching (RSS)	Prioritization	Selective downloads	Sequential downloading	SOCKS	Tracker exchange	Remote control via web	Search engine	Auto updates	Reviews and Comments

Libraries

General

BitTorrent library	Initial release	Platform	Latest release		License	Notes
			Version	Date
libtorrent (Rasterbar)	8 September 2005; 19 years ago (2005-09-08)[102]	Linux	2.0.9,[103] 1.2.19[104]  2.0.11[105]	2023-05-22 2025-01-28	BSD-3-Clause
		macOS
		Windows
MonoTorrent	September 2006; 18 years ago (2006-09)	Linux	3.0.2[106]	2024-08-04	MIT
		macOS
		Windows
rTorrent (libTorrent Rakshasa)	15 July 2004; 20 years ago (2004-07-15)[107]	Linux	0.15.1[108]	2025-01-01	GPL-2.0-or-later[as]	[at]
		macOS
BitTorrent library	Initial release	Platform	Latest release		License	Notes
			Version	Date

Operating system support and programming language

BitTorrent library	GNU/Linux	Windows	macOS	API	Programming language
libtorrent (Rasterbar)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	C++
MonoTorrent	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	C#
rTorrent (libTorrent Rakshasa)	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	C++
BitTorrent library	Linux	Windows	macOS	API	Programming language

Supported features 1

BitTorrent library	Protocol version	Super-seeding	Tracker	UPnP[au]	NAT Port Mapping Protocol	NAT traversal[av]	DHT[aw]	Peer exchange	Encryption	UDP tracker	LPD	Fast extensions	Magnet URI	μTP
libtorrent (Rasterbar)	1, 2[109]	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes[110]	Yes	Yes	Yes[111]
MonoTorrent	1, 2	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
rTorrent (libTorrent Rakshasa)	1	Yes	Yes	No	?	?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No
BitTorrent library	Protocol version	Super-seeding	Tracker	UPnP	NAT Port Mapping Protocol	NAT traversal	DHT	Peer exchange	Encryption	UDP tracker	LPD	Fast extensions	Magnet URI	μTP

Supported features 2

BitTorrent library	Cache[ax]	Web seeding[ay]	WebTorrent	Broadcatching (RSS)	Prioritization	Selective downloads	SOCKS	Remote control via web	Engine
libtorrent (Rasterbar)	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	?
MonoTorrent	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No
rTorrent (libTorrent Rakshasa)	Partial	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No
BitTorrent library	Cache	Web seeding	WebTorrent	Broadcatching (RSS)	Prioritization	Selective downloads	SOCKS	Remote control via web	Engine

See also

• Anonymous P2P
• BitTorrent tracker
• Comparison of BitTorrent sites
• Comparison of BitTorrent tracker software
• Comparison of file sharing applications
• File sharing
• Open Music Model
• Timeline of file sharing

Notes

1. Portable version available.
2. Installs WhenU adware.
3. FlashGet (standalone application) is not FlashGot (Firefox Addon).
4. The option to disable ads is included in the settings.^[26]
5. Web browser.
6. No built-in disk cache but a delayed sync.
7. Maximum active torrent number depends on respective user settings and is limited to 31.
8. Lightweight client, Portable version available, option to keep all peers unchoked available. Integral encrypted chatrooms that allow streaming audio and video, link sharing and searching.
9. Fully distributed keyword search; integrated anti-spam measures.^[36]
10. Formerly Azureus.
11. The only client to bridge between i2p and the clearnet.
12. x86-32 and x86-64 builds available
13. Including eComStation and ArcaOS.
14. Through Cygwin.^[48]
15. Through Cydia.
16. Only has options for launching the GUI^[50]
17. Qdbus interface
18. For a torrent added from a Magnet link, obtain the list of files (and other metadata) before prompting the user for a download location.
19. Tracker included with Linux binaries and with source, but not with Windows binary.
20. This is done manually. Right click an item and select "Force Re-Check". This will trigger preload. Note, if deluge is restarted before preload finishes, it will continue downloading torrent content.
21. μTorrent's DHT implementation Archived 18 March 2009 at the Wayback Machine is the same as Mainline and BitComet's, but unfortunately this is incompatible with Azureus's implementation.
22. Exchanging with BT 6 and μTorrent clients (and now MooPolice).
23. v4.6.0 added (experimental) I2P support^[61] to provide anonymity.
24. Since Shareaza v2.6.0.0, Shareaza includes Mainline DHT support. Also, Shareaza can use the Gnutella2 network to find other Gnutella2 clients sharing the same torrent. This also includes clients who do not actively seed the torrent in question anymore, as long as file hashes (such as sha1 for example) are known.
25. Since Shareaza v2.5.5.1 r9064.
26. Only with out going without DHT if anonymity required.
27. Exchanges with μTorrent and Azureus peers.
28. Uses P2P onion routing to provide anonymity.
29. Since version 2.5.0.2. It's UDP based, an experimental feature and only supported by other Azureus clients.
30. Has its own DHT, a mainline-DHT compatible implementation is available as plugin.
31. Reduces disk usage, file fragmentation (in case it is not preallocated) and latencies via larger written blocks and cached data for hash checking finished pieces.
32. Called "preview mode" Archived 4 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine
33. Built-in Web browser.
34. Does not support HTTP redirection (status codes: 301, 302, 303, 307).
35. Does not support HTTPS.
36. Only available in Pro and web version.From version 3.0 this feature is called "Streaming mode". The number of pieces to download sequentially is configurable
37. Opera has a feed aggregator that displays feeds like emails.
38. Windows and Mac OS X only; via PMS on Linux.
39. Hard-coded as disabled in newer versions.
40. Since Shareaza v2.4.0.2 r7924.
41. Since Shareaza v2.5.3.1.
42. Shareaza also uses G2 to transmit download metadata, such as BitTorrent trackers to other G2 clients.
43. Adds HTTP referer header in request on HTTP redirection (useful behavior).
44. Provides a Java-based and a simple HTML/JS based WebUI.
45. With OpenSSL exception.
46. No built-in cache-disk cache but a delayed sync.
47. Automatically configure port forwarding (requires Router with UPnP support)
48. Many clients claim to support this, but just UPnP calls for opening a TCP port is not effective and disabled by factory default in most new hardware. "UDP NAT Traversal" is the proper working solution, supported by just a few.
49. DHT permits use of trackerless torrents (with supporting clients) to resume normal torrents when their tracker is down. However, some trackers that register their users for keeping tabs on fair usage (such as a ratio of bytes downloaded to uploaded) may not reliably measure and update usage for users employing DHT.
50. Reduces disk usage, file fragmentation (in case it is not preallocated) and latencies due to larger written blocks and cached data for hash checking finished pieces.
51. Recently implemented (unofficial) web seeding feature, see HTTP-Based Seeding Specification Archived 28 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine