# NATS vs Novu

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

| | NATS | Novu |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 80/100 ✓ | 76/100 |
| Rank in category | #2 of 12 in Message Broker | #2 of 19 in Notifications |
| GitHub stars | 20 954 | 40 219 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | +192 ✓ | +170 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 18 ✓ | 12 |
| Latest release | v2.14.9 · 26 Oct 2026 ✓ | @novu/framework@v2.14.0 · 28 Sept 2026 |
| Setup | Moderate ✓ | Advanced |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Other |
| Main language | Go | Typescript |

## Which one should you pick?

NATS scores 80/100 against 76/100 for Novu, so it is the safer default.

NATS ships more often: 18 stable releases in the past year, against 12 for Novu.

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

## Details

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

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