# Arcane vs netbird

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

| | Arcane | netbird |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 76/100 | 81/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #2 of 44 in Container Management | #2 of 56 in VPN |
| GitHub stars | 8 103 | 30 310 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | +510 | +807 ✓ |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 31 | 40 ✓ |
| Latest release | v2.17.1 · 25 Oct 2026 | v0.81.5 · 26 Oct 2026 ✓ |
| Setup | Easy ✓ | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | BSD-3-Clause | Other |
| Main language | Go | Go |

## Which one should you pick?

netbird scores 81/100 against 76/100 for Arcane, so it is the safer default.

netbird ships more often: 40 stable releases in the past year, against 31 for Arcane.

If you want the quickest setup, Arcane is easier to run; netbird needs more configuration.

## Details

- [Arcane](https://selfhost.directory/project/arcane) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/arcane.md)
- [netbird](https://selfhost.directory/project/netbird) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/netbird.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/arcane-vs-netbird