# Mastodon vs nginx-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).

## Details

- [Mastodon](https://selfhost.directory/project/mastodon) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/mastodon.md)
- [nginx-proxy](https://selfhost.directory/project/nginx-proxy) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/nginx-proxy.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/mastodon-vs-nginx-proxy