bitcoindvsNATS
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| bitcoind | NATS | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 87/100 | 80/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 9 in Fintech | #2 of 12 in Message Broker |
| GitHub stars | 90 526 | 20 954 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +286 | +192 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 9 | 18 |
| Latest release | v29.5 · 26 Oct 2026 | v2.14.9 · 26 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Advanced | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | No | Yes |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | C++ | Go |
Which one should you pick?
bitcoind scores 87/100 against 80/100 for NATS, so it is the safer default.
NATS ships more often: 18 stable releases in the past year, against 9 for bitcoind.
If you want the quickest setup, NATS is easier to run; bitcoind needs more configuration.
bitcoind details →NATS details →
Swap a project
Keep bitcoind, compare it with
Keep NATS, compare it with