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Caddy Docker Proxy vs Nginx Proxy Manager

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?
CA Caddy Docker Proxy Generate Caddy reverse proxy config from Docker labels VS NG Nginx Proxy Manager Easy reverse proxy management with a web UI and free SSL
FeatureCaddy Docker ProxyNginx Proxy Manager
CategoryReverse Proxy & GatewaysReverse Proxy & Gateways
LicenseMITMIT
LanguageGoTypeScript
Setup difficultyEasyEasy
Min. RAM64 MB256 MB
Deploymentdockerdocker
GitHub stars★ 4,606★ 33,804
First released20182019
ReplacesTraefikCloudflare

Why pick each one

Choose Caddy Docker Proxy if…

  • Released under the MIT license
  • Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
  • First-class Docker support for quick deployment
  • Active community (4.6k GitHub stars)
Caddy Docker Proxy details

Choose Nginx Proxy Manager if…

  • Beginner-friendly
  • Free certificates built in
Nginx Proxy Manager details

Frequently asked questions

Is Caddy Docker Proxy or Nginx Proxy Manager better?

Neither is universally better. Nginx Proxy Manager has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are Caddy Docker Proxy and Nginx Proxy Manager free and open-source?

Yes. Caddy Docker Proxy is licensed under MIT and Nginx Proxy Manager under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Caddy Docker Proxy and Nginx Proxy Manager with Docker?

Caddy Docker Proxy: yes. Nginx Proxy Manager: yes.

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