# Pterodactyl vs youtube-dl-server

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

| | Pterodactyl | youtube-dl-server |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 75/100 ✓ | 47/100 |
| Rank in category | #4 of 62 in Game Servers | #31 of 45 in Download Management |
| GitHub stars | 9 440 ✓ | 319 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +185 ✓ | +0 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 11 ✓ | 0 |
| Latest release | v1.15.2 · 21 Oct 2026 | — |
| Setup | Advanced | Easy ✓ |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | Other | MIT |
| Main language | PHP | Python |

## Which one should you pick?

Pterodactyl scores 75/100 against 47/100 for youtube-dl-server, so it is the safer default.

Pterodactyl ships more often: 11 stable releases in the past year, against 0 for youtube-dl-server.

If you want the quickest setup, youtube-dl-server is easier to run; Pterodactyl needs more configuration.

Pterodactyl is growing faster right now (+185 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [Pterodactyl](https://selfhost.directory/project/pterodactyl) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/pterodactyl.md)
- [youtube-dl-server](https://selfhost.directory/project/youtube-dl-server) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/youtube-dl-server.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/pterodactyl-vs-youtube-dl-server