head to head · open source
certstrap vs docker-nginx-certbot
certstrap has 2,462 GitHub stars, 212 forks, 32 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. docker-nginx-certbot has 1,211 stars, 195 forks, 8 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. certstrap leads on adoption by 103% (2,462 vs 1,211 stars). certstrap is written in Go under Apache-2.0; docker-nginx-certbot is written in Shell under MIT. certstrap has attracted 9% as many forks as stars, docker-nginx-certbot 16%. docker-nginx-certbot was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (certificate-authority), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
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
| certstrap | docker-nginx-certbot | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 2.5K | ★ 1.2K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Go | Shell |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-03 |
| Forks | ⑂ 212 | ⑂ 195 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick certstrap if
- You weight community size — 2.5K 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 docker-nginx-certbot if
- You want the docker-nginx-certbot feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Shell
- You evaluated both and docker-nginx-certbot fits your workflow better
About certstrap
certstrap A simple certificate manager written in Go, to bootstrap your own certificate authority and public key infrastructure. Adapted from etcd ca. certstrap is a very convenient app if you don't feel like dealing with openssl, its myriad of options or config files. Common Uses certstrap allows you to build your own certificate system: 1. Initialize certificate authorities 2. Create identities and certificate signature requests for hosts 3. Sign and generate certificates Certificate architecture certstrap can init multiple certificate authorities to sign certificates with. Users can make arbitrarily long…
read the full certstrap overview →
About docker-nginx-certbot
docker nginx certbot Automatically create and renew website SSL certificates using the [Let's Encrypt][1] free certificate authority and its client [ certbot ][2]. Built on top of the [official Nginx Docker images][9] (both Debian and Alpine), and uses OpenSSL/LibreSSL to automatically create the Diffie Hellman parameters used during the initial handshake of some ciphers. :information source: The very first time this container is started it might take a long time before it is ready to respond to requests. Read more about this in the Diffie Hellman parameters section. :information source: Please use a specific…
read the full docker-nginx-certbot overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is certstrap or docker-nginx-certbot more popular?
certstrap has 2,462 GitHub stars and docker-nginx-certbot has 1,211. certstrap has the larger community by that measure.
Are certstrap and docker-nginx-certbot free?
Both are open source. certstrap is licensed under Apache-2.0 and docker-nginx-certbot under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between certstrap and docker-nginx-certbot?
certstrap is written in Go and docker-nginx-certbot in Shell. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, certstrap or docker-nginx-certbot?
Choose certstrap if you want the larger community (2,462 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose docker-nginx-certbot if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.