# Nightingale vs Tailscale

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

| | Nightingale | Tailscale |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 58/100 | 84/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #15 of 54 in Media Streaming | #1 of 56 in VPN |
| GitHub stars | 1 522 | 38 275 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | +0 | +1 433 ✓ |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 9 | 14 ✓ |
| Latest release | v1.3.0 · 15 Oct 2026 | v1.104.4 · 27 Oct 2026 ✓ |
| Setup | Advanced | Moderate ✓ |
| Official Docker image | Yes ✓ | No |
| License | GPL-3.0 | BSD-3-Clause |
| Main language | Typescript | Go |

## Which one should you pick?

Tailscale scores 84/100 against 58/100 for Nightingale, so it is the safer default.

Tailscale ships more often: 14 stable releases in the past year, against 9 for Nightingale.

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

Tailscale is growing faster right now (+1 433 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [Nightingale](https://selfhost.directory/project/nightingale) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/nightingale.md)
- [Tailscale](https://selfhost.directory/project/tailscale) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/tailscale.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/nightingale-vs-tailscale