head to head · open source
traefik vs port-buddy
traefik has 65,442 GitHub stars, 6,318 forks, 939 open issues and last shipped yesterday. port-buddy has 536 stars, 46 forks, 2 open issues and last shipped yesterday. traefik leads on adoption by 12,109% (65,442 vs 536 stars). traefik is written in Go under MIT; port-buddy is written in Java under Apache-2.0. traefik has attracted 10% as many forks as stars, port-buddy 9%. traefik 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
| traefik | port-buddy | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 65K | ★ 536 |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Go | Java |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 6.3K | ⑂ 46 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick traefik if
- You weight community size — 65K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick port-buddy if
- You want the port-buddy feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You evaluated both and port-buddy fits your workflow better
About traefik
Traefik (pronounced traffic ) is a modern HTTP reverse proxy and load balancer that makes deploying microservices easy. Traefik integrates with your existing infrastructure components (Docker, Swarm mode, Kubernetes, Consul, Etcd, Rancher v2, Amazon ECS, ...) and configures itself automatically and dynamically. Pointing Traefik at your orchestrator should be the only configuration step you need. . Overview . Features . Supported backends . Quickstart . Web UI . Documentation . . Support . Release cycle . Contributing . Maintainers . Credits . :warning: When migrating to a new major version of Traefik, please…
read the full traefik overview →
About port-buddy
🚀 Port Buddy — Secure Localhost Tunneling (HTTP, TCP, UDP) Official Website License Port Buddy is a lightweight, high performance ngrok alternative designed to instantly expose your local development servers to the public internet. Unlike standard tools, Port Buddy features native, zero configuration support for HTTP/HTTPS , raw TCP , and UDP protocols right out of the box. Whether you need to test webhooks, expose a local database, debug an SSH connection, or host a local multiplayer game server, Port Buddy creates a secure reverse tunnel with a single command—no router port forwarding required. ✨ Key Features…
read the full port-buddy overview →
More in Infrastructure & Operations
Related comparisons
More Networking & Connectivity projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the Networking & Connectivity field.
Frequently asked questions
Is traefik or port-buddy more popular?
traefik has 65,442 GitHub stars and port-buddy has 536. traefik has the larger community by that measure.
Are traefik and port-buddy free?
Both are open source. traefik is licensed under MIT and port-buddy under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between traefik and port-buddy?
traefik is written in Go and port-buddy in Java. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, traefik or port-buddy?
Choose traefik if you want the larger community (65,442 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose port-buddy if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.