Kong GatewayvsMastodon
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| Kong Gateway | Mastodon | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 82/100 | 82/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 39 in API Gateway | #2 of 69 in Social Networks & Forums |
| GitHub stars | 44 319 | 50 457 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +129 | +137 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 3 | 38 |
| Latest release | 3.9.4 · 12 Oct 2026 | v4.4.26 · 1 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Moderate | Advanced |
| Official Docker image | No | Yes |
| License | Apache-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Main language | Lua | Ruby |
Which one should you pick?
Kong Gateway and Mastodon score the same (82/100), so the choice comes down to the details below.
Mastodon ships more often: 38 stable releases in the past year, against 3 for Kong Gateway.
If you want the quickest setup, Kong Gateway is easier to run; Mastodon needs more configuration.
Kong Gateway details →Mastodon details →