# consul vs NATS

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

| | consul | NATS |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 73/100 | 80/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #3 of 31 in Networking | #2 of 12 in Message Broker |
| GitHub stars | 30 089 ✓ | 20 954 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +8 | +192 ✓ |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 7 | 18 ✓ |
| Latest release | v2.1.0 · 22 Oct 2026 | v2.14.9 · 26 Oct 2026 ✓ |
| Setup | Advanced | Moderate ✓ |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | Other | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | Go | Go |

## Which one should you pick?

NATS scores 80/100 against 73/100 for consul, so it is the safer default.

NATS ships more often: 18 stable releases in the past year, against 7 for consul.

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

NATS is growing faster right now (+192 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [consul](https://selfhost.directory/project/consul) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/consul.md)
- [NATS](https://selfhost.directory/project/nats) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/nats.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/consul-vs-nats