head to head · open source
compose vs dapr
compose has 38,446 GitHub stars, 5,883 forks, 111 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. dapr has 26,154 stars, 2,170 forks, 452 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. compose leads on adoption by 47% (38,446 vs 26,154 stars). compose is written in Go under Apache-2.0; dapr is written in Go under Apache-2.0. compose has attracted 15% as many forks as stars, dapr 8%. dapr 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
| compose | dapr | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 38K | ★ 26K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Go | Go |
| Last push | 2026-10-22 | 2026-10-22 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.9K | ⑂ 2.2K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick compose if
- You weight community size — 38K 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 dapr if
- You want the dapr feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and dapr fits your workflow better
About compose
Table of Contents Docker Compose Where to get Docker Compose + Windows and macOS + Linux Quick Start Contributing Legacy Docker Compose Docker Compose is a tool for running multi container applications on Docker defined using the Compose file format. A Compose file is used to define how one or more containers that make up your application are configured. Once you have a Compose file, you can create and start your application with a single command: docker compose up . Note : About Docker Swarm Docker Swarm used to rely on the legacy compose file format but did not adopt the compose specification so is missing…
read the full compose overview →
About dapr
The runtime for durable execution, AI agents, and secure distributed applications [![Go Report][go report badge]][go report url] [![OpenSSF][openssf badge]][openssf url] [![Docker Pulls][docker badge]][docker url] [![Build Status][actions badge]][actions url] [![Test Status][e2e badge]][e2e url] [![Code Coverage][codecov badge]][codecov url] [![License: Apache 2.0][apache badge]][apache url] [![FOSSA Status][fossa badge]][fossa url] [![TODOs][todo badge]][todo url] [![Good First Issues][gfi badge]][gfi url] [![discord][discord badge]][discord url] [![YouTube][youtube badge]][youtube link] [![Bluesky][bluesky…
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Frequently asked questions
Is compose or dapr more popular?
compose has 38,446 GitHub stars and dapr has 26,154. compose has the larger community by that measure.
Are compose and dapr free?
Both are open source. compose is licensed under Apache-2.0 and dapr under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between compose and dapr?
compose is written in Go and dapr 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, compose or dapr?
Choose compose if you want the larger community (38,446 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose dapr if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.