head to head · open source
FireZone vs Defguard
FireZone has 9,097 GitHub stars, 456 forks, 412 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Defguard has 2,841 stars, 115 forks, 308 open issues and last shipped yesterday. FireZone leads on adoption by 220% (9,097 vs 2,841 stars). FireZone is written in Elixir under Apache-2.0; Defguard is written in Rust under a custom or non-standard licence. FireZone has attracted 5% as many forks as stars, Defguard 4%. Defguard 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
| FireZone | Defguard | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 9.1K | ★ 2.8K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Custom / other |
| Written in | Elixir | Rust |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 456 | ⑂ 115 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick FireZone if
- You weight community size — 9.1K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Elixir
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Defguard if
- You want the Defguard feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches Rust
- You evaluated both and Defguard fits your workflow better
About FireZone
FireZone is an enterprise ready zero trust access platform built on WireGuard. It connects users to private applications, databases, servers, and subnets through granular policies that define who can reach each Resource and under what conditions. It lives in the Security & Privacy / Network Security ecosystem, with Elixir, Phoenix LiveView, and Rust components indicated by repository topics and language metadata.
read the full FireZone overview →
About Defguard
Defguard is a self hosted secure remote access platform that combines WireGuard VPN, identity and access management, multi factor authentication, and network access control. It lives in the Rust based open source network security ecosystem and presents itself as zero trust access management with true WireGuard 2FA/MFA. The project uses an AGPL open source core, while Enterprise components are described as open code.
read the full Defguard overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is FireZone or Defguard more popular?
FireZone has 9,097 GitHub stars and Defguard has 2,841. FireZone has the larger community by that measure.
Are FireZone and Defguard free?
Both are open source. FireZone is licensed under Apache-2.0, and Defguard has no licence declared in this registry. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between FireZone and Defguard?
FireZone is written in Elixir and Defguard in Rust. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, FireZone or Defguard?
Choose FireZone if you want the larger community (9,097 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose Defguard if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.