head to head · open source
Dokku vs NHost
Dokku has 32,220 GitHub stars, 2,098 forks, 36 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. NHost has 9,375 stars, 640 forks, 164 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Dokku leads on adoption by 244% (32,220 vs 9,375 stars). Dokku is written in Shell under MIT; NHost is written in Go under MIT. Dokku has attracted 7% as many forks as stars, NHost 7%. NHost 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
| Dokku | NHost | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 32K | ★ 9.4K |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | Shell | Go |
| Last push | 2026-11-03 | 2026-11-04 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.1K | ⑂ 640 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Dokku if
- You weight community size — 32K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Shell
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick NHost if
- You want the NHost feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and NHost fits your workflow better
About Dokku
Dokku Docker powered mini Heroku. The smallest PaaS implementation you've ever seen. Sponsors Become a sponsor and get your logo on our README on GitHub with a link to your site. [Become a sponsor] Backers Support us with a monthly donation and help us continue our activities. [Become a backer] [ ](
read the full Dokku overview →
About NHost
Nhost Quickstart • Website • Docs • Blog • X • Discord • Ask Nhost Guru (third party, unofficial) Nhost is an open source Firebase alternative with GraphQL, built with the following things in mind: Open Source GraphQL SQL Great Developer Experience Nhost consists of open source software: Database: PostgreSQL Instant GraphQL API: Hasura Authentication: Auth Storage: Storage Serverless Functions: Node.js (JavaScript and TypeScript) Nhost CLI for local development Architecture of Nhost Visit for the complete documentation. Get Started Option 1: Nhost Hosted Platform 1. Sign in to Nhost. 2. Create Nhost app. 3…
read the full NHost overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Dokku or NHost more popular?
Dokku has 32,220 GitHub stars and NHost has 9,375. Dokku has the larger community by that measure.
Are Dokku and NHost free?
Both are open source. Dokku is licensed under MIT and NHost under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Dokku and NHost?
Dokku is written in Shell and NHost 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, Dokku or NHost?
Choose Dokku if you want the larger community (32,220 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose NHost if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.