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GitHub stars can be deceiving. Learn how to properly evaluate open source projects using commit activity, issue response time, documentation quality, and 10 other critical metrics that matter more than star count.
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GitHub stars are often the first metric developers check when evaluating a project. But relying solely on star count can lead to poor decisions. Here's how to properly assess open source projects.
Popularity ≠ Quality
Stars Don't Show Activity
Context Matters
Check the Insights → Commits graph:
✅ Good: Regular commits (weekly/monthly)
✅ Great: Multiple contributors
⚠️ Warning: No commits in 6+ months
❌ Bad: Abandoned (1+ year inactive)
Look at recent issues:
Red flags:
Check Pull Requests tab:
Good signs:
Excellent documentation includes:
# Quality Documentation Checklist - [ ] Installation instructions - [ ] Quick start guide - [ ] API reference - [ ] Examples and tutorials - [ ] Troubleshooting section - [ ] FAQ - [ ] Contribution guide
Look for:
Check package.json or equivalent:
Discussions: Active community? Discord/Slack: Real-time support? Stack Overflow: Questions being answered?
Check Releases tab:
Ensure compatible with your use case:
Best indicators:
| Metric | Points | Your Score | |--------|--------|------------| | Active development (commits) | 15 | ___ | | Issue response time | 15 | ___ | | PR merge rate | 10 | ___ | | Documentation quality | 15 | ___ | | Test coverage | 10 | ___ | | Community engagement | 10 | ___ | | Release frequency | 10 | ___ | | Production usage | 15 | ___ |
70+: Excellent choice 50-69: Good, monitor Below 50: Proceed with caution
Let's evaluate a hypothetical package manager:
Project: "fast-package-manager"
Stars: 5,000 (looks good!)
But deeper analysis reveals:
- Last commit: 14 months ago ❌
- 300+ open issues ❌
- No releases in 18 months ❌
- Major security vulnerability ❌
- Maintainer inactive ❌
Verdict: AVOID despite high star count
Shows actual usage, not just interest.
How many projects depend on this?
Are forks more active than original?
Growing contributor base = healthy project.
Sometimes lower-star projects are better:
🚩 Bus factor of 1 - Single maintainer 🚩 No tests - Quality concerns 🚩 No license - Legal issues 🚩 Breaking changes - No stability 🚩 Toxic community - Drama and conflicts
Built-in analytics for commits, contributors, traffic.
Dependency tracking and updates.
Security vulnerability scanning.
Compare package popularity and downloads.
Security best practices score.
Ask yourself:
GitHub stars are a starting point, not the end point. Thorough evaluation takes time but saves countless hours of debugging, security issues, and potential rewrites.
Remember: A well-maintained project with 1,000 stars beats an abandoned one with 100,000 stars every time!
Next time you evaluate a project, use this guide. Your future self will thank you!