Caddy vs H2O
Caddy
caddyserver.comH2O
h2o.examp1e.netSide by side
| Figure | Caddy | H2O |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $25/mo | — |
| Free plan | — | — |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | — |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | — |
| API | Yes | — |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 8 | 0 |
| Spec score · Web Server Software | 8.1 (#6) | 7.6 (#18) |
| Deployment | Caddy can be deployed as a command-line process, system service, container, Kubernetes workload, or embedded component. | The install guide documents building from source with CMake and lists binary packages for FreeBSD, macOS Homebrew, several RPM distributions, and Docker. |
| Purpose | Caddy is an extensible server platform commonly used as a web server or proxy. | H2O is an optimized HTTP server supporting HTTP/1.x, HTTP/2, and HTTP/3. |
| Security | The maker says Caddy's TLS defaults meet PCI DSS, NIST, and HIPAA compliance requirements. | The repository has a security advisories page listing reported vulnerabilities and fixes, and asks users to report vulnerabilities by email. |
| Support | Free community help is available through the forum; paid sponsorship tiers offer private support and other services depending on tier. | The FAQ directs users with problems to GitHub issues tagged as FAQ. |
Plans
Caddy
- Indie$25 a month
- Indie Pro$50 a month
- Startup$99 a month
- Startup Pro$249 a month
- Business$999 a month
- Business+$2,999 a month
- Enterprise$5,900 a month
- Enterprise+$11,900 a month
In their own words
Caddy
Caddy is an extensible server platform used as a web server or proxy, and it is self-hosted. By default, it obtains and renews TLS certificates for sites and redirects HTTP to HTTPS. Its reverse proxy supports HTTP, HTTPS, WebSockets, gRPC, and FastCGI, along with load balancing and health checks. Configuration options include JSON through a RESTful API, the Caddyfile, and other adapters. Compile-time plugins extend its static binary. DNS challenge integrations include Cloudflare, DigitalOcean, Route 53, and other providers through libdns. Caddy can run as a command-line process, system service, container, Kubernetes workload, or embedded component. The software is free, with no paywalled features; sponsorship plans add services and support while leaving the license unchanged. Free community help is available through a forum. Caddy says its TLS defaults meet PCI DSS, NIST, and HIPAA compliance requirements, and that dependencies are verified with Go modules and release artifacts are cryptographically signed.