Kong Gateway vs Tor Snowflake Proxy
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?
Kong Gateway
Cloud-native, fast, scalable API gateway
VS
Tor Snowflake Proxy
Help defeat internet censorship
| Feature | Kong Gateway | Tor Snowflake Proxy |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Reverse Proxy & Gateways | Reverse Proxy & Gateways |
| License | Apache-2.0 | free |
| Language | Lua | |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, helm | docker, one-click |
| GitHub stars | ★ 43,947 | — |
| First released | 2015 | 2022 |
| Replaces | AWS API Gateway, Apigee | — |
Why pick each one
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
Choose Tor Snowflake Proxy if…
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- One-click install on common self-host platforms
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Kong Gateway or Tor Snowflake Proxy better?
Neither is universally better. Kong Gateway has the larger community, while Tor Snowflake Proxy is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Kong Gateway and Tor Snowflake Proxy free and open-source?
Yes. Kong Gateway is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Tor Snowflake Proxy under free. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Kong Gateway and Tor Snowflake Proxy with Docker?
Kong Gateway: yes. Tor Snowflake Proxy: yes.