head to head · open source
AdGuardHome vs vulcain
AdGuardHome has 37,117 GitHub stars, 2,527 forks, 1,253 open issues and last shipped today. vulcain has 3,595 stars, 103 forks, 28 open issues and last shipped 2 months ago. AdGuardHome leads on adoption by 932% (37,117 vs 3,595 stars). AdGuardHome is written in TypeScript under GPL-3.0; vulcain is written in Go under AGPL-3.0. AdGuardHome has attracted 7% as many forks as stars, vulcain 3%. AdGuardHome was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| AdGuardHome | vulcain | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 37K | ★ 3.6K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-29 | 2026-08-15 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.5K | ⑂ 103 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick AdGuardHome if
- You weight community size — 37K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick vulcain if
- You want the vulcain feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and vulcain fits your workflow better
About AdGuardHome
AdGuard Home is a free and open source, network wide DNS server that blocks ads and trackers for every device on a network, aimed at self hosters, homelab operators, and network administrators who want filtering without installing client side software on each device.
read the full AdGuardHome overview →
About vulcain
Vulcain is an open source protocol and gateway server, written in Go and released under AGPL 3.0, that turns any existing web API into a client driven REST API by using Preload hints and the 103 Early Hints status code; it is intended for API developers and platform teams who want precise control over which related resources a client fetches without abandoning REST, HTTP caching, or their existing HTTP infrastructure.
read the full vulcain overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is AdGuardHome or vulcain more popular?
AdGuardHome has 37,117 GitHub stars and vulcain has 3,595. AdGuardHome has the larger community by that measure.
Are AdGuardHome and vulcain free?
Both are open source. AdGuardHome is licensed under GPL-3.0 and vulcain under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between AdGuardHome and vulcain?
AdGuardHome is written in TypeScript and vulcain in Go. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, AdGuardHome or vulcain?
Choose AdGuardHome if you want the larger community (37,117 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose vulcain if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.