Algernon vs Kong Gateway
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?
Algernon
Small self-contained pure-Go web server with Lua, Markdown, HTTP/2,
VS
Kong Gateway
Cloud-native, fast, scalable API gateway
| Feature | Algernon | Kong Gateway |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Reverse Proxy & Gateways | Reverse Proxy & Gateways |
| License | BSD-3-Clause | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | JavaScript | Lua |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker, kubernetes, helm |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,023 | ★ 43,947 |
| First released | 2026 | 2015 |
| Replaces | — | AWS API Gateway, Apigee |
Why pick each one
Choose Algernon if…
- Released under the BSD-3-Clause license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (3k GitHub stars)
- Written in JavaScript
Choose Kong Gateway if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
- Mature project with 43.9k GitHub stars
Frequently asked questions
Is Algernon or Kong Gateway better?
Neither is universally better. Kong Gateway has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Algernon and Kong Gateway free and open-source?
Yes. Algernon is licensed under BSD-3-Clause and Kong Gateway under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Algernon and Kong Gateway with Docker?
Algernon: yes. Kong Gateway: yes.