head to head · open source
caddy vs lightway-core
caddy has 78,984 GitHub stars, 5,252 forks, 286 open issues and last shipped yesterday. lightway-core has 627 stars, 74 forks, 6 open issues and last shipped 7 months ago. caddy leads on adoption by 12,497% (78,984 vs 627 stars). caddy is written in Go under Apache-2.0; lightway-core is written in C under GPL-2.0. caddy has attracted 7% as many forks as stars, lightway-core 12%. caddy 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
| caddy | lightway-core | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 79K | ★ 627 |
| License | Apache-2.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| Written in | Go | C |
| Last push | 2026-11-11 | 2026-04-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.3K | ⑂ 74 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick caddy if
- You weight community size — 79K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick lightway-core if
- You want the lightway-core feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C
- You evaluated both and lightway-core fits your workflow better
About caddy
a project Every site on HTTPS Caddy is an extensible server platform that uses TLS by default. Releases · Documentation · Get Help Powered by Special thanks to: Warp, built for coding with multiple AI agents Available for MacOS, Linux, & Windows Menu Features Install Build from source For development With version information and/or plugins Quick start Overview Full documentation Getting help About Features Easy configuration with the Caddyfile Powerful configuration with its native JSON config Dynamic configuration with the JSON API Config adapters if you don't like JSON Automatic HTTPS by default ZeroSSL and…
read the full caddy overview →
About lightway-core
= Lightway Core ifdef::env github[] :warning caption: :warning: endif::[] [WARNING] ==== Lightway C is no longer under active development. The repository remains unarchived for those who wish to use it for research purposes, but we strongly encourage the use of Rust], as it continues to be actively maintained and improved. ==== Lightway Core is a modern VPN protocol by ExpressVPN, to deliver a VPN experience that’s faster, more secure, and more reliable. == ExpressVPN One of the world’s largest providers of VPN services, ExpressVPN enables users to protect their privacy and security online with just a few…
read the full lightway-core overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is caddy or lightway-core more popular?
caddy has 78,984 GitHub stars and lightway-core has 627. caddy has the larger community by that measure.
Are caddy and lightway-core free?
Both are open source. caddy is licensed under Apache-2.0 and lightway-core under GPL-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between caddy and lightway-core?
caddy is written in Go and lightway-core in C. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, caddy or lightway-core?
Choose caddy if you want the larger community (78,984 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose lightway-core if its feature set, stack or GPL-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.