NGINXvsZero-K
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| NGINX | Zero-K | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 84/100 | 62/100 |
| Rank in category | #2 of 12 in Web Servers | #2 of 23 in Gaming |
| GitHub stars | 31 998 | 877 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +274 | +26 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 21 | 0 |
| Latest release | release-1.31.8 · 21 Oct 2026 | — |
| Setup | Moderate | Easy |
| Official Docker image | Yes | No |
| License | BSD-2-Clause | GPL-2.0 |
| Main language | C | Lua |
Which one should you pick?
NGINX scores 84/100 against 62/100 for Zero-K, so it is the safer default.
NGINX ships more often: 21 stable releases in the past year, against 0 for Zero-K.
If you want the quickest setup, Zero-K is easier to run; NGINX needs more configuration.
NGINX is growing faster right now (+274 stars in 30 days).
NGINX details →Zero-K details →
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