lodestone vs PufferPanel
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted game servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | lodestone | PufferPanel |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 15 · At risk | 85 · Excellent |
| Category | Game Servers | Game Servers |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Rust | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary, source | docker, bare-metal, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,308 | ★ 1,748 |
| First released | 2022 | 2015 |
| Replaces | AMP, Pterodactyl | AMP, Multicraft |
What are lodestone and PufferPanel?
lodestone
Lodestone is a free, open-source game server hosting tool that provides a clean web dashboard to deploy and manage Minecraft and other game servers. It is designed to be simple to install on a home server.
- Web game server dashboard
- One-click Minecraft setup
- Macro automation
- Lightweight install
PufferPanel
Pufferpanel is a free, open-source game server management panel that provides a web interface to install, configure, and control dedicated game servers. It supports a wide range of games through its template system.
- Web-based game server panel
- Multi-game template support
- User and subuser permissions
- OAuth login
lodestone vs PufferPanel: key differences
Lodestone is written in Rust, while PufferPanel is built with Go. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for lodestone versus Apache-2.0 for PufferPanel. PufferPanel is the more established project (first released 2015), while lodestone arrived in 2022.
Why pick each one
Choose lodestone if…
- Beginner-friendly
- Self-contained
Watch out for
- Fewer games than Pterodactyl
- Project pace varies
Choose PufferPanel if…
- Lightweight panel
- Supports many games
Watch out for
- Smaller than Pterodactyl ecosystem
- Templates need tuning
Frequently asked questions
Is lodestone or PufferPanel better?
Neither is universally better. PufferPanel has the larger community, while lodestone is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are lodestone and PufferPanel free and open-source?
Yes. lodestone is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and PufferPanel under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run lodestone and PufferPanel with Docker?
lodestone: yes. PufferPanel: yes.