# nginx-proxy vs vLLM

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

| | nginx-proxy | vLLM |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 76/100 | 91/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #3 of 24 in Reverse Proxy | #3 of 25 in LLM Inference |
| GitHub stars | 19 937 | 95 774 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | +19 | +3 222 ✓ |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 11 | 14 ✓ |
| Latest release | 1.11.6 · 16 Jul 2026 | v0.32.0 · 17 Oct 2026 ✓ |
| Setup | Easy ✓ | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | Python | Python |

## Which one should you pick?

vLLM scores 91/100 against 76/100 for nginx-proxy, so it is the safer default.

vLLM ships more often: 14 stable releases in the past year, against 11 for nginx-proxy.

If you want the quickest setup, nginx-proxy is easier to run; vLLM needs more configuration.

vLLM is growing faster right now (+3 222 stars in 30 days).

## Details

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

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