Comparison of BitTorrent clients explained

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
BitComet	BitComet Development Group	macOS
		Windows
BitLord	House of Life	macOS
		Windows
BitTorrent	BitTorrent	Android
		macOS
		Windows
Deluge	various	BSD
		Linux
		macOS
		Solaris
		Windows
FlashGet	Trend Media	Windows
Free Download Manager	alervd	Android
		Linux
		macOS
		Windows
FrostWire	The FrostWire Project	Android
		Linux
		macOS
		Windows
KGet	KDE	BSD
		Linux
KTorrent	Joris Guisson, Ivan Vasić	BSD
		Linux
		macOS
Lftp	Alexander V. Lukya	BSD
		Linux
		macOS
		Windows
LimeWire	Lime Wire LLC	Linux
		macOS
		Windows
Miro	Participatory Culture Foundation	Linux
		macOS
		Windows
MLDonkey	MLDonkey Project	BSD
		Linux
		macOS
		MorphOS
		Solaris
		Windows
μTorrent	BitTorrent	Android
		macOS
		Windows
Opera 12	Opera Software	FreeBSD	12.16
		Linux
		macOS
		Solaris
		Windows	12.17
qBittorrent	Christophe Dumez	BSD
		Linux
		Haiku
		macOS
		OS/2
		Windows
rTorrent	Jari Sundell	BSD
		Linux
		macOS
		Solaris
		Windows
Robert	Sponge, co-developer of I2P	BSD
		Linux
		macOS
		Windows
Shareaza	Shareaza Development Team	Windows
Tixati	Kevin Hearn	Linux
		Windows
Tonido	CodeLathe	BSD
		Linux
		macOS
		Windows
Transmission	various	BSD
		Linux
		macOS
		OpenWrt
		Solaris
		Windows
Tribler	The Tribler Team	Linux
		macOS
		Windows
Vuze	Vuze	Android
		Linux
		macOS
		Windows
Xunlei	Thunder Networking Technologies	Android
		iOS
		macOS
		Windows
Name	Developer	Platform	Latest release		License	Notes
			Version	Date

Operating system support

BitTorrent client	Windows	macOS	GNU/Linux	BSD	iOS	Android	Other
BitComet
BitLord
BitTorrent						^[5]
Deluge
FlashGet
Free Download Manager
Frostwire	^[6]						^[7]
KGet
KTorrent
Lftp
LimeWire
Miro
MLDonkey
μTorrent						^[8]
Opera 12
qBittorrent	^[9]					^[10]
Robert
rTorrent
Shareaza
Tixati
Tonido
Transmission
Tribler
Vuze						^[11]
Xunlei
Name	Windows	macOS	GNU/Linux	BSD	iOS	Android	Other

Interface and programming

BitTorrent client	GUI	Remote	CLI	Other	Programming language	Based on	IPv6	μTP
BitComet			^[12]		C++	-
BitLord					Python, C++	libtorrent (Rasterbar)
BitTorrent 5, Mainline					Python	-
Deluge					Python, C++	libtorrent (Rasterbar)		^[13]
FlashGet
Free Download Manager					C++	libtorrent (Rasterbar)
Frostwire					Java	libtorrent (Rasterbar)		^[14]
KGet					C++	-
KTorrent					C++	-		^[15]
lftp					C++	-
LimeWire					Java	libtorrent (Rasterbar)
Miro					C++	libtorrent (Rasterbar)
MLDonkey		^[16]			OCaml	-
μTorrent			^[17]	^[18]	C++^[19]	-	^[20]	^[21]
Opera 12					C++	-
qBittorrent					Python, C++	libtorrent (Rasterbar)		^[22]
rTorrent					C++	libTorrent (Rakshasa)	^[23]
Shareaza					C++	-
Tixati					C++	-		^[24]
Tonido					C++	libtorrent (Rasterbar)
Transmission					C++ (rewritten from C), Objective-C	libtransmission		^[25]
Tribler					Python, C++	libtorrent (Rasterbar)
Vuze					Java, SWT	-		^[26]
Xunlei					C++	-
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 (BEP 9)	Super-seeding (BEP 16)	Embedded tracker	UPnP^[27]	NAT Port Mapping Protocol	NAT traversal^[28] (BEP 55)	DHT protocol^[29] (BEP 5)	Peer exchange(PEX) (BEP 11)	Encryption	UDP tracker (BEP 15)	LPD (BEP 14)	Proxy server
BitComet	1, 2				Separate download
BitLord	1
BitTorrent 5, Mainline	1
Deluge	1
FlashGet	1
Free Download Manager	1
KTorrent	1
LimeWire	1
MLDonkey	1	^[30]
μTorrent	1		^[31]	^[32]	^[33]	^[34]		^[35]			^[36]		^[37]
Opera 12	1				^[38]					^[39]
qBittorrent	1, 2^[40]
rTorrent	1	^[41]											^[42]
Shareaza	1
Tixati	1, 2
Tonido	1
Transmission	1, 2^[43]		Patch available^[44] ^[45] ^[46]					^[47]						^[48]
Tribler	1
Vuze	1
Xunlei	1
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	Hash Web seeding	HTTP Web seeding	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
BitComet			^[49]
BitLord
BitTorrent 5, Mainline
Deluge				Plugin								via PMS
FlashGet
Free Download Manager
KTorrent												via PMS
LimeWire
MLDonkey								^[50]				via PMS
μTorrent		^[51]		^[52]	^[53]
Opera 12
qBittorrent												via PMS
rTorrent												via PMS
Shareaza									^[54]
Tixati			^[55]
Tonido
Transmission						^[56]
Tribler											(DHT)^[57]
Vuze			^[58]				in paid version ^[59]			Plugin			^[60]
Xunlei
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)	^[61]	Linux
		macOS
		Windows
MonoTorrent		Linux
		macOS
		Windows
rTorrent (libTorrent Rakshasa)	^[62]	Linux
		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)					C++
MonoTorrent					C#
rTorrent (libTorrent Rakshasa)					C++
BitTorrent library	Linux	Windows	macOS	API	Programming language

Supported features 1

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
libtorrent (Rasterbar)	1, 2^[63]										^[64]			^[65]
MonoTorrent	1, 2
rTorrent (libTorrent Rakshasa)	1
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	Web seeding	WebTorrent	Broadcatching (RSS)	Prioritization	Selective downloads	SOCKS	Remote control via web	Engine
libtorrent (Rasterbar)
MonoTorrent
rTorrent (libTorrent Rakshasa)
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 and References

1. Book: . BitTorrent User Manual . Glossary . http://www.bittorrent.com/help/manual/glossary#client . 2 July 2013 . . . 28 June 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130628015036/http://www.bittorrent.com/help/manual/glossary#client . live .
2. Web site: Cohen . Bram . BitTorrent – a new P2P app . Decentralization · Implications of the end-to-end principle . . 2 July 2001 . 2 July 2013 . 29 January 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080129085545/http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/decentralization/message/3160 . dead .
3. Web site: Google-backed BitTorrent client spread malware to Windows PCs and Android devices . Van Der Sar . Ernesto . 14 October 2013 . . 19 November 2013 . 18 December 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131218142524/http://torrentfreak.com/google-backed-file-sharing-spreads-malware-131014/ . live .
4. Web site: Google-Backed File-Sharing Service Spreads Malware . Gibbs . Samuel . 15 October 2013 . . Guardian News and Media . 19 November 2013 . 18 November 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131118213046/http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/oct/15/google-bittorrent-malware-windows-android-xunlei-china . live .
5. Web site: Download - BitTorrent® - Android torrent app. BitTorrent (software). 22 March 2017. 23 March 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170323054508/https://www.bittorrent.com/downloads/android. live.
6. Web site: Download FrostWire . frostwire.com . 26 July 2018 . 27 July 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180727054709/http://www.frostwire.com/downloads . live .
7. Web site: Java 6 (OpenJDK) Released for OS/2, eComStation – OSnews. www.osnews.com. 5 February 2022. 20 April 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210420032040/https://www.osnews.com/story/24903/java-6-openjdk-released-for-os2-ecomstation/. live.
8. Web site: Android Downloads. μTorrent® (uTorrent) - a (very) tiny BitTorrent client. 22 March 2017. 24 March 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170324045909/http://www.utorrent.com/downloads/android. live.
9. Web site: qBittorrent Official Website . qBittorrent Official Website . 11 January 2016 . 9 January 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160109163543/http://www.qbittorrent.org/download.php . live .
10. Web site: Android client (not remote/controller) · Issue #4027 · qbittorrent/qBittorrent . . 21 March 2017 . 4 June 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200604062431/https://github.com/qbittorrent/qBittorrent/issues/4027#issuecomment-152734893 . live .
11. Web site: Vuze Torrent Downloader application for Android. Vuze. 22 March 2017. 30 January 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170130142557/http://www.vuze.com/products/vuze-android/. live.
12. BitComet command line interface see BitComet Command Line – BitComet Wiki
13. Web site: Kaba. Martin. Deluge BitTorrent client gets uTP support. Kabatology. 17 April 2016. deluge-utp. 27 February 2013. 25 April 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160425131953/http://www.kabatology.com/02/27/deluge-bittorrent-client-gets-utp-support/. live.
14. Web site: FrostWire 5.7.2. 2014-04-11. 5 March 2015. 2 April 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150402134218/https://frostwire.wordpress.com/2014/04/11/new-frostwire-5-7-2-with-utp-support/. live.
15. Web site: KTorrent 4.0 . dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20150402090740/http://ktorrent.pwsp.net/?q=node%2F42 . 2015-04-02 .
16. Web site: Gui - MLDonkey . 25 February 2017 . 25 February 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170225212619/http://mldonkey.sourceforge.net/Gui . live .
17. Web site: uTorrent command line options – Forums - μTorrent – The Lightweight and Efficient BitTorrent Client . 15 February 2009 . Forum.utorrent.com . 28 November 2009 . 8 December 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20091208161703/http://forum.utorrent.com/viewtopic.php?id=53988 . live .
18. Web site: Web API . www.utorrent.com . 6 July 2013 . 1 August 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130801095910/http://www.utorrent.com/community/developers/webapi . live .
19. Web site: General – FAQ - μTorrent – a (very) tiny BitTorrent client . www.utorrent.com . 28 November 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090318175258/http://www.utorrent.com/faq.php#How_can_.C2.B5Torrent_be_so_small_and_so_fast.3F . 18 March 2009 . dead .
20. Web site: μTorrent 1.8 released . 9 August 2008 . Forum.utorrent.com . 28 November 2009 . 20 November 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20091120140320/http://forum.utorrent.com/viewtopic.php?id=44003 . live .
21. Web site: µTorrent 1.9 alpha 15380. µTorrent Community Forums. 26 November 2008 . 15 September 2015. 28 October 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20151028161306/http://forum.utorrent.com/topic/42439-%C2%B5torrent-19-alpha-15380/. live.
22. Web site: News Releases . 2023-11-13 . www.qbittorrent.org . 2019-12-13 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191213192059/https://www.qbittorrent.org/news.php . live .
23. Web site:
    1. 507 Ipv6
    . GitHub. 2016-10-10. 3 June 2020. 20 October 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201020032700/https://github.com/rakshasa/rtorrent/pull/507. live.
24. Web site: Tixati.com - News. tixati.com. 9 April 2022. 9 December 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211209051548/https://www.tixati.com/news/. live.
25. Web site: Transmission 2.30 . 2012-07-12 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150524013026/https://trac.transmissionbt.com/wiki/Changes#version-2.30 . 2015-05-24 . dead.
26. Web site: Vuze 4.6.0.0 . 8 March 2015 . 2 April 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150402124548/https://wiki.vuze.com/w/Version_4400_4702_Changelog . live .
27. Automatically configure port forwarding (requires Router with UPnP support)
28. 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.
29. 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.
30. Web site: MLDonkey 3.1.3 release notes . Forum mldonkey.sourceforge.net . 13 February 2013 . 14 February 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130214053946/http://mldonkey.sourceforge.net/forums/viewtopic.php?p=32169 . live .
31. Web site: μTorrent 3.13 Apk For Android . apk20.com . 22 November 2015 . 7 December 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151207013526/http://www.apk20.com/apk/5903/ . live .
32. Web site: μTorrent 1.6 released . July 2006 . Forum.utorrent.com . 28 November 2009 . 13 December 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20091213050128/http://forum.utorrent.com/viewtopic.php?id=11463 . live .
33. Web site: uTorrent: Make Your Own BitTorrent Tracker . Filesharefreak.com . 28 November 2009 . 18 December 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20091218120012/http://filesharefreak.com/tutorials/utorrent-make-your-own-bittorrent-tracker/ . live .
34. Web site: Setting up μTorrent for your internet connection . www.utorrent.com . 28 November 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090315005429/http://www.utorrent.com/setup_guide.php . 15 March 2009 . dead .
35. Web site: µTorrent 2.0 beta 17539 - Announcements - µTorrent Community Forums. 5 August 2009 . 29 June 2010. 24 June 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20100624080826/http://forum.utorrent.com/viewtopic.php?id=60602. live.
36. Web site: How To Encrypt BitTorrent Traffic . Torrentfreak.com . 16 April 2006 . 28 November 2009 . 16 December 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20091216030048/http://torrentfreak.com/how-to-encrypt-bittorrent-traffic/ . live .
37. Web site: Announcements » μTorrent 1.7 Release Candidate 6. 28 June 2007. 12 December 2009. 1 March 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20100301190555/http://forum.utorrent.com/viewtopic.php?id=25655. live.
38. Web site: Weekly – Desktop Team – by Opera Desktop Team . My.opera.com . 27 February 2007 . 28 November 2009 . 18 June 2006 . https://web.archive.org/web/20060618005308/http://my.opera.com/desktopteam/blog/show.dml/251672 . live .
39. Web site: Opera 9.5 Beta 1 for Windows Changelog . Opera.com . 28 November 2009 . 10 March 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100310082311/http://www.opera.com/docs/changelogs/windows/950b1/ . live .
40. Web site: Bittorrent client qBittorrent 4.4.0 released with v2 torrent support . ghacks.net . 8 January 2022 . 15 January 2022 . 15 January 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220115235900/https://www.ghacks.net/2022/01/08/bittorrent-client-qbittorrent-4-4-0/ . live .
41. Aided with a shell script documented in Web site: That magnet uri ticket thing reincarnated . libtorrent.rakshasa.no . 4 July 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110927222544/http://libtorrent.rakshasa.no/ticket/2100 . 27 September 2011 . dead .
42. Web site: local peer discovery . libtorrent.rakshasa.no . 17 April 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100413231237/http://libtorrent.rakshasa.no/ticket/1188 . 13 April 2010 . dead .
43. Web site: Transmission 4.0 Open-Source BitTorrent Client Released, Here's What's New . 9to5Linux . 7 February 2023 . 7 February 2023 . 8 February 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230208052515/https://9to5linux.com/transmission-4-0-open-source-bittorrent-client-released-heres-whats-new . live .
44. unofficial build transmission daemon cygwin Web site: Magnet Links - choose what files to download . Sourceforge.net . 27 April 2016 . 22 September 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160922225402/https://sourceforge.net/p/transmissiondaemon/discussion/general/thread/6929551a/ . live .
45. unofficial build Transmission-Qt Web site: Transmission-Qt . Sourceforge.net . 27 April 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120825050551/http://sourceforge.net/projects/trqtw/ . 25 August 2012 . dead.
46. unofficial build cfpp2p GitHub transmission Web site: magnet download not verified for existing data . github.com . 27 April 2016 . 4 June 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200604062428/https://github.com/cfpp2p/transmission/commit/c81be4700920ead21771f2fb2f6e2f099896a02d . live .
47. Web site: transmission/libtransmission/peer-msgs.c . github.com . 30 July 2020 . 5 February 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220205024918/https://github.com/transmission/transmission/blob/20119f006ca0f3a13245b379c74254c92f372910/libtransmission/peer-msgs.c#L2454 . live .
48. Proxy support was removed in version 2.12: Web site: Ticket #3688 . trac.transmissionbt.com . 11 June 2011 . 31 August 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110831100012/https://trac.transmissionbt.com/ticket/3688 . live .
49. Supports the Getright Webseeding spec since v1.14, see BitComet Wiki
50. See task #4401 SOCKS proxy ; however, http proxy is supported.
51. Web site: uTorrent 1.7 Stable Finally Released . TorrentFreak . 13 July 2007 . 28 November 2009 . 3 February 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100203064329/http://torrentfreak.com/utorrent-17-stable-finally-released/ . live .
52. Web site: How to use RSS & BitTorrent to download TV shows . TorrentFreak . 14 October 2006 . 28 November 2009 . 23 November 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20091123032531/http://torrentfreak.com/how-to-use-rss-bittorrent-to-download-tv-shows/ . live .
53. Web site: uTorrent – Free software downloads and software reviews – CNET . fa . Download.com . 28 November 2009 . 11 March 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090311043145/http://www.download.com/uTorrent/3000-2196_4-10528327.html . live .
54. Web site: Shareaza. sourceforge.net. 19 December 2017 .
55. Web site: Tixati News . Tixati . 19 August 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220831203601/https://tixati.com/news/ . 31 August 2022.
56. Web site: BEP 53 select-only magnet URI · Issue #5582 · transmission/Transmission . .
57. Web site: Tribler . 9 February 2017 . 29 March 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170329141157/https://www.tribler.org/faq.html . live .
58. Supports the Getright Webseeding spec in addition to the Bittornado spec Web site: Archived copy . 2006-05-09 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110812124123/http://bittornado.com/docs/webseed-spec.txt . 2011-08-12 .
59. Web site: Stream Torrents - Vuze Bittorrent Client. www.vuze.com. 1 June 2014. 4 August 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140804092826/http://www.vuze.com/features/playnow. live.
60. Web site: Additional Vuze Features - VuzeWiki. wiki.vuze.com. 8 March 2015. 2 April 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150402141811/http://wiki.vuze.com/w/Additional_Vuze_Features. live.
61. Web site: libtorrent – Browse Files at . Sourceforge.net . 21 March 2010 . 15 August 2012 . 25 October 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121025132330/http://sourceforge.net/projects/libtorrent/files/ . live .
62. Web site: Timeline – The libTorrent and rTorrent Project . Libtorrent.rakshasa.no . 15 July 2012 . 15 August 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131104110338/http://libtorrent.rakshasa.no/timeline . 4 November 2013 . dead .
63. Web site: Libtorrent Adds Support for BitTorrent v2, a Potential Game-Changer . TorrentFreak . 12 September 2020 . 15 January 2022 . 16 January 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220116001329/https://torrentfreak.com/libtorrent-adds-support-for-bittorrent-v2-a-potential-game-changer-200912/ . live .
64. Web site: libtorrent manual: features. 12 December 2009. 2 November 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121102075327/http://www.rasterbar.com/products/libtorrent/features.html. live.
65. Web site: Google Code Archive - Long-term storage for Google Code Project Hosting.. code.google.com. 5 February 2022. 18 April 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210418021745/https://code.google.com/archive/p/libtorrent/downloads. live.