# apisix vs mCaptcha

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

| | apisix | mCaptcha |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 78/100 ✓ | 55/100 |
| Rank in category | #2 of 39 in API Gateway | #32 of 78 in Security |
| GitHub stars | 17 267 ✓ | 2 498 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +102 ✓ | +5 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 5 ✓ | 0 |
| Latest release | 3.19.0 · 28 Sept 2026 | — |
| Setup | Moderate | Moderate ✓ |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | Apache-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Main language | Lua | Rust |

## Which one should you pick?

apisix scores 78/100 against 55/100 for mCaptcha, so it is the safer default.

apisix ships more often: 5 stable releases in the past year, against 0 for mCaptcha.

apisix is growing faster right now (+102 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [apisix](https://selfhost.directory/project/apisix) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/apisix.md)
- [mCaptcha](https://selfhost.directory/project/mcaptcha) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/mcaptcha.md)

---
Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/apisix-vs-mcaptcha