Coolify vs Dokploy: Which Self-Hosted PaaS Is Better
Coolify and Dokploy are two leading open-source solutions for turning your VPS into a personal Vercel. Both use Docker under the hood, but with different approaches.
Common Ground
Both platforms can:
- Deploy applications from Git repositories
- Manage Docker containers
- Configure HTTPS via Let’s Encrypt
- Launch databases
- Monitor service health
What Sets Coolify Apart
Coolify is a market veteran, existing since 2021. Over 30,000 GitHub stars. Key advantages:
- More ready-made services — 50+ one-click services (n8n, WordPress, Ghost, etc.)
- Preview deployments — automatic environments for pull requests
- Teams — multi-user access with roles
- Cloud version — you can avoid self-hosting entirely
What Sets Dokploy Apart
Dokploy is a younger project (2024), but with an interesting approach:
- Modern UI — the interface is cleaner and more pleasant than Coolify’s
- Docker Compose-first — a native approach to docker-compose files
- Fewer dependencies — easier installation, fewer moving parts
- Traefik built-in — for advanced routing
- Faster development — an active team, frequent releases
Stability
Coolify is more stable due to its age. Dokploy sometimes breaks compatibility between versions. This matters for production.
Onboarding
Dokploy is slightly easier for beginners — fewer options, a more intuitive interface. Coolify is more powerful but requires time to master.
Verdict
Coolify — for those who need a mature platform with maximum features and team collaboration support.
Dokploy — for those who value modern UX, simplicity, and work with smaller projects.
Both are actively developing. The gap is closing every month.