Mastodonvsnginx-proxy
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| Mastodon | nginx-proxy | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 82/100 | 76/100 |
| Rank in category | #2 of 69 in Social Networks & Forums | #3 of 24 in Reverse Proxy |
| GitHub stars | 50 458 | 19 937 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +139 | +19 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 38 | 11 |
| Latest release | v4.4.26 · 1 Oct 2026 | 1.11.6 · 16 Jul 2026 |
| Setup | Advanced | Easy |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Main language | Ruby | Python |
Which one should you pick?
Mastodon scores 82/100 against 76/100 for nginx-proxy, so it is the safer default.
Mastodon ships more often: 38 stable releases in the past year, against 11 for nginx-proxy.
If you want the quickest setup, nginx-proxy is easier to run; Mastodon needs more configuration.
Mastodon is growing faster right now (+139 stars in 30 days).
Mastodon details →nginx-proxy details →