head to head · open source
Docker vs wtf
Docker has 72,113 GitHub stars, 19,233 forks, 3,902 open issues and last shipped yesterday. wtf has 17,095 stars, 864 forks, 107 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. Docker leads on adoption by 322% (72,113 vs 17,095 stars). Docker is written in Go under Apache-2.0; wtf is written in Go under MPL-2.0. Docker has attracted 27% as many forks as stars, wtf 5%. Docker was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (go, golang), 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.
← all 20902 open source comparisons
Side by side
| Docker | wtf | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 72K | ★ 17K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MPL-2.0 |
| Written in | Go | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-19 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 19K | ⑂ 864 |
| 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 wtf if
- You want the wtf feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MPL-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and wtf fits your workflow better
About Docker
Docker, published here as the Moby Project, is the open source collection of container toolkit components and the framework for assembling them into custom container based systems, built for engineers, integrators and enthusiasts who want to modify, hack and build on container code rather than buy a commercially supported product.
read the full Docker overview →
About wtf
WTF (also known as wtfutil) is a free, open source personal information dashboard that runs in the terminal, built for developers and technical people who want at a glance access to important but infrequently consulted data without leaving the command line.
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 wtf more popular?
Docker has 72,113 GitHub stars and wtf has 17,095. Docker has the larger community by that measure.
Are Docker and wtf free?
Both are open source. Docker is licensed under Apache-2.0 and wtf under MPL-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Docker and wtf?
Docker is written in Go and wtf 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, Docker or wtf?
Choose Docker if you want the larger community (72,113 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose wtf if its feature set, stack or MPL-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.