# cobalt vs Portainer

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

| | cobalt | Portainer |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 83/100 ✓ | 77/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 45 in Download Management | #1 of 44 in Container Management |
| GitHub stars | 45 591 ✓ | 38 737 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +1 807 ✓ | +188 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 0 | 21 ✓ |
| Latest release | — | 2.45.3 · 21 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Easy | Easy ✓ |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Zlib |
| Main language | Svelte | Typescript |

## Which one should you pick?

cobalt scores 83/100 against 77/100 for Portainer, so it is the safer default.

Portainer ships more often: 21 stable releases in the past year, against 0 for cobalt.

cobalt is growing faster right now (+1 807 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [cobalt](https://selfhost.directory/project/cobalt) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/cobalt.md)
- [Portainer](https://selfhost.directory/project/portainer) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/portainer.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/cobalt-vs-portainer