# Encore vs NATS

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

| | Encore | NATS |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 72/100 | 80/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #4 of 14 in Platform as a Service | #2 of 12 in Message Broker |
| GitHub stars | 12 655 | 20 956 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | +170 | +191 ✓ |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 9 | 18 ✓ |
| Latest release | v1.58.8 · 20 Oct 2026 | v2.14.9 · 26 Oct 2026 ✓ |
| Setup | Moderate | Moderate ✓ |
| Official Docker image | No | Yes ✓ |
| License | MPL-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | Go | Go |

## Which one should you pick?

NATS scores 80/100 against 72/100 for Encore, so it is the safer default.

NATS ships more often: 18 stable releases in the past year, against 9 for Encore.

## Details

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

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