head to head · open source
Docker vs octodns
Docker has 72,238 GitHub stars, 19,309 forks, 3,902 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. octodns has 3,775 stars, 453 forks, 3 open issues and last shipped 10 days ago. Docker leads on adoption by 1,814% (72,238 vs 3,775 stars). Docker is written in Go under Apache-2.0; octodns is written in Python under MIT. Docker has attracted 27% as many forks as stars, octodns 12%. Docker 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.
← all 20902 open source comparisons
Side by side
| Docker | octodns | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 72K | ★ 3.8K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Go | Python |
| Last push | 2026-11-03 | 2026-10-26 |
| Forks | ⑂ 19K | ⑂ 453 |
| 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 octodns if
- You want the octodns feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and octodns 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 octodns
DNS as code Tools for managing DNS across multiple providers In the vein of infrastructure as code octoDNS provides a set of tools & patterns that make it easy to manage your DNS records across multiple providers. The resulting config can live in a repository and be deployed just like the rest of your code, maintaining a clear history and using your existing review & workflow. The architecture is pluggable and the tooling is flexible to make it applicable to a wide variety of use cases. Effort has been made to make adding new providers as easy as possible. In the simple case that involves writing of a single…
read the full octodns overview →
More in Infrastructure & Operations
Related comparisons
More Cloud Infrastructure Management projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the Cloud Infrastructure Management field.
Frequently asked questions
Is Docker or octodns more popular?
Docker has 72,238 GitHub stars and octodns has 3,775. Docker has the larger community by that measure.
Are Docker and octodns free?
Both are open source. Docker is licensed under Apache-2.0 and octodns under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Docker and octodns?
Docker is written in Go and octodns in Python. 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 octodns?
Choose Docker if you want the larger community (72,238 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose octodns if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.