# actions-runner-controller vs setup-ipsec-vpn

> Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.

| | actions-runner-controller | setup-ipsec-vpn |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 71/100 | 78/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #7 of 28 in CI/CD | #3 of 56 in VPN |
| GitHub stars | 6 612 | 28 882 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | +95 | +325 ✓ |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 6 ✓ | 0 |
| Latest release | gha-runner-scale-set-0.15.1 · 23 Oct 2026 | — |
| Setup | Advanced | Easy ✓ |
| Official Docker image | Yes ✓ | No |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Other |
| Main language | Go | Shell |

## Which one should you pick?

setup-ipsec-vpn scores 78/100 against 71/100 for actions-runner-controller, so it is the safer default.

actions-runner-controller ships more often: 6 stable releases in the past year, against 0 for setup-ipsec-vpn.

If you want the quickest setup, setup-ipsec-vpn is easier to run; actions-runner-controller needs more configuration.

setup-ipsec-vpn is growing faster right now (+325 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [actions-runner-controller](https://selfhost.directory/project/actions-runner-controller) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/actions-runner-controller.md)
- [setup-ipsec-vpn](https://selfhost.directory/project/setup-ipsec-vpn) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/setup-ipsec-vpn.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/actions-runner-controller-vs-setup-ipsec-vpn