ATAC vs Keploy
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted developer tools & git options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | ATAC | Keploy |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 88 · Excellent | 95 · Excellent |
| Category | Developer Tools & Git | Developer Tools & Git |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Rust | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,729 | ★ 18,479 |
| First released | 2024 | 2022 |
| Replaces | Postman, Insomnia | Postman |
What are ATAC and Keploy?
ATAC
ATAC is an open-source terminal user interface API client that lets developers test HTTP APIs without leaving the console. Collections are stored as plain files so they can be version controlled and self-managed.
- Terminal UI client
- Postman import support
- Git-friendly collections
- Offline operation
Keploy
Keploy is an open-source testing toolkit that records API calls and database interactions to automatically generate test cases and data mocks. It is self-hosted as a CLI and server for backend testing.
- Tests from real traffic
- Auto-generated mocks
- CI integration
- No code changes needed
ATAC vs Keploy: key differences
ATAC is written in Rust, while Keploy is built with Go. Licensing differs — MIT for ATAC versus Apache-2.0 for Keploy. ATAC is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Keploy. Keploy is the more established project (first released 2022), while ATAC arrived in 2024. Keploy has the considerably larger community, at 18,479 GitHub stars versus 3,729. Keploy lists first-class Docker deployment; ATAC does not.
Why pick each one
Choose ATAC if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Active community (3.7k GitHub stars)
- Written in Rust
Choose Keploy if…
- Tests from real traffic
- Automatic mock generation
- CI-friendly CLI
Watch out for
- Linux-centric capture
- Setup varies per stack
Frequently asked questions
Is ATAC or Keploy better?
Neither is universally better. Keploy has the larger community, while ATAC is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are ATAC and Keploy free and open-source?
Yes. ATAC is licensed under MIT and Keploy under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run ATAC and Keploy with Docker?
ATAC: check the project docs for container support. Keploy: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, ATAC or Keploy?
ATAC has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Keploy. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.