Adguard vs Traefik
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted reverse proxy & gateways options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
| Feature | Adguard | Traefik |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Reverse Proxy & Gateways | Reverse Proxy & Gateways |
| License | free | MIT |
| Language | Go | |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, one-click | docker, kubernetes, helm |
| GitHub stars | — | ★ 64,330 |
| First released | 2023 | 2015 |
| Replaces | — | HAProxy, AWS ELB |
Why pick each one
Choose Adguard if…
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- One-click install on common self-host platforms
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Choose Traefik if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
- Mature project with 64.3k GitHub stars
Frequently asked questions
Is Adguard or Traefik better?
Neither is universally better. Traefik has the larger community, while Adguard is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Adguard and Traefik free and open-source?
Yes. Adguard is licensed under free and Traefik under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Adguard and Traefik with Docker?
Adguard: yes. Traefik: yes.