Headscale vs WebSSH2
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted remote access & vpn options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Headscale
Open-source self-hosted Tailscale control server
VS
WebSSH2
Web-based SSH client using xterm.js and WebSockets
| Feature | Headscale | WebSSH2 |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Remote Access & VPN | Remote Access & VPN |
| License | BSD-3-Clause | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Go | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | docker, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 42,612 | ★ 2,766 |
| First released | 2020 | 2017 |
| Replaces | Tailscale | PuTTY |
Why pick each one
Choose WebSSH2 if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (2.8k GitHub stars)
Frequently asked questions
Is Headscale or WebSSH2 better?
Neither is universally better. Headscale has the larger community, while WebSSH2 is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Headscale and WebSSH2 free and open-source?
Yes. Headscale is licensed under BSD-3-Clause and WebSSH2 under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Headscale and WebSSH2 with Docker?
Headscale: yes. WebSSH2: yes.