head to head · open source
frp vs dns.toys
frp has 109,639 GitHub stars, 15,224 forks, 48 open issues and last shipped 12 days ago. dns.toys has 2,828 stars, 186 forks, 10 open issues and last shipped 7 months ago. frp leads on adoption by 3,777% (109,639 vs 2,828 stars). frp is written in Go under Apache-2.0; dns.toys is written in Go under MIT. frp has attracted 14% as many forks as stars, dns.toys 7%. frp 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
| frp | dns.toys | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 110K | ★ 2.8K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Go | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-15 | 2026-02-26 |
| Forks | ⑂ 15K | ⑂ 186 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick frp if
- You weight community size — 110K 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 dns.toys if
- You want the dns.toys feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and dns.toys fits your workflow better
About frp
frp is a fast reverse proxy written in Go that exposes a local server behind a NAT or firewall to the internet, built for operators and developers who need inbound access to machines they cannot port forward.
About dns.toys
dns.toys is an MIT licensed DNS server, written in Go, that takes creative liberties with the DNS protocol to deliver everyday utilities — weather, world time, unit and currency conversion, IP lookup and more — to anyone with a terminal and a dig command.
read the full dns.toys overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is frp or dns.toys more popular?
frp has 109,639 GitHub stars and dns.toys has 2,828. frp has the larger community by that measure.
Are frp and dns.toys free?
Both are open source. frp is licensed under Apache-2.0 and dns.toys under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between frp and dns.toys?
frp is written in Go and dns.toys 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, frp or dns.toys?
Choose frp if you want the larger community (109,639 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose dns.toys if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.