# Caddy vs certificates

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

| | Caddy | certificates |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 90/100 ✓ | 72/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 12 in Web Servers | #1 of 2 in PKI |
| GitHub stars | 78 522 ✓ | 9 021 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +2 487 ✓ | +121 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 6 ✓ | 3 |
| Latest release | v2.11.7 · 3 Oct 2026 ✓ | v0.30.2 · 23 Mar 2026 |
| Setup | Easy ✓ | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | Go | Go |

## Which one should you pick?

Caddy scores 90/100 against 72/100 for certificates, so it is the safer default.

Caddy ships more often: 6 stable releases in the past year, against 3 for certificates.

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

Caddy is growing faster right now (+2 487 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [Caddy](https://selfhost.directory/project/caddy) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/caddy.md)
- [certificates](https://selfhost.directory/project/certificates) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/certificates.md)

---
Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/caddy-vs-certificates