GoTTY vs Wetty
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted remote access & vpn options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | GoTTY | Wetty |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 27 · At risk | 90 · Excellent |
| Category | Remote Access & VPN | Remote Access & VPN |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | Go | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | binary, docker | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 19,554 | ★ 5,448 |
| First released | 2015 | 2014 |
| Replaces | PuTTY | PuTTY |
What are GoTTY and Wetty?
GoTTY
GoTTY is a simple command-line tool that turns any CLI program into a web application accessible from a browser. It is useful for sharing terminal sessions and remote access.
- CLI programs as web apps
- Single binary
- Read-only or interactive mode
- Basic auth support
Wetty
Wetty is a terminal application that runs in the browser and connects to a server over SSH. It uses xterm.js to provide a responsive terminal experience accessible anywhere.
- Terminal in the browser
- xterm.js powered
- SSH connection backend
- Lightweight container
GoTTY vs Wetty: key differences
GoTTY is written in Go, while Wetty is built with TypeScript. GoTTY is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 128 MB for Wetty. GoTTY has the considerably larger community, at 19,554 GitHub stars versus 5,448.
Why pick each one
Choose GoTTY if…
- Instant terminal sharing
- Single small binary
- No dependencies
Watch out for
- Upstream largely unmaintained
- Security needs careful setup
Choose Wetty if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 5.4k GitHub stars
Frequently asked questions
Is GoTTY or Wetty better?
Neither is universally better. GoTTY has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are GoTTY and Wetty free and open-source?
Yes. GoTTY is licensed under MIT and Wetty under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run GoTTY and Wetty with Docker?
GoTTY: yes. Wetty: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, GoTTY or Wetty?
GoTTY has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 128 MB for Wetty. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.