head to head · open source
frp vs smartdns
frp has 109,502 GitHub stars, 15,213 forks, 48 open issues and last shipped 4 days ago. smartdns has 11,312 stars, 1,247 forks, 320 open issues and last shipped 20 days ago. frp leads on adoption by 868% (109,502 vs 11,312 stars). frp is written in Go under Apache-2.0; smartdns is written in C under GPL-3.0. frp has attracted 14% as many forks as stars, smartdns 11%. 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 | smartdns | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 110K | ★ 11K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Go | C |
| Last push | 2026-09-15 | 2026-08-30 |
| Forks | ⑂ 15K | ⑂ 1.2K |
| 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 smartdns if
- You want the smartdns feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C
- You evaluated both and smartdns 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 smartdns
SmartDNS is a local DNS server, written in C and licensed under GPL 3.0, that accepts DNS queries from local clients, asks multiple upstream DNS servers, and returns the IP address with the fastest measured access speed — built for self hosters, router owners, and network operators who want faster name resolution and stronger privacy.
read the full smartdns overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is frp or smartdns more popular?
frp has 109,502 GitHub stars and smartdns has 11,312. frp has the larger community by that measure.
Are frp and smartdns free?
Both are open source. frp is licensed under Apache-2.0 and smartdns under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between frp and smartdns?
frp is written in Go and smartdns in C. 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 smartdns?
Choose frp if you want the larger community (109,502 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose smartdns if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.