head to head · open source
Docker vs aws-cdk
Docker has 72,240 GitHub stars, 19,301 forks, 3,902 open issues and last shipped yesterday. aws-cdk has 12,962 stars, 4,669 forks, 2,863 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Docker leads on adoption by 457% (72,240 vs 12,962 stars). Docker is written in Go under Apache-2.0; aws-cdk is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0. Docker has attracted 27% as many forks as stars, aws-cdk 36%. aws-cdk 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
| Docker | aws-cdk | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 72K | ★ 13K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Go | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-04 | 2026-11-04 |
| Forks | ⑂ 19K | ⑂ 4.7K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Docker if
- You weight community size — 72K 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 aws-cdk if
- You want the aws-cdk feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and aws-cdk fits your workflow better
About Docker
The Moby Project ================ Moby is an open source project created by Docker to enable and accelerate software containerization. It provides a "Lego set" of toolkit components, the framework for assembling them into custom container based systems, and a place for all container enthusiasts and professionals to experiment and exchange ideas. Components include container build tools, a container registry, orchestration tools, a runtime and more, and these can be used as building blocks in conjunction with other tools and projects. Principles Moby is an open project guided by strong principles, aiming to be…
read the full Docker overview →
About aws-cdk
AWS Cloud Development Kit (AWS CDK) The AWS Cloud Development Kit (AWS CDK) is an open source software development framework to define cloud infrastructure in code and provision it through AWS CloudFormation. It offers a high level object oriented abstraction to define AWS resources imperatively using the power of modern programming languages. Using the CDK’s library of infrastructure constructs, you can easily encapsulate AWS best practices in your infrastructure definition and share it without worrying about boilerplate logic. The CDK is available in the following languages: JavaScript, TypeScript (Node.js =…
read the full aws-cdk overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Docker or aws-cdk more popular?
Docker has 72,240 GitHub stars and aws-cdk has 12,962. Docker has the larger community by that measure.
Are Docker and aws-cdk free?
Both are open source. Docker is licensed under Apache-2.0 and aws-cdk under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Docker and aws-cdk?
Docker is written in Go and aws-cdk in TypeScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Docker or aws-cdk?
Choose Docker if you want the larger community (72,240 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose aws-cdk if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.