Updated 2026-04-22
Coolify vs Dokploy in 2026: Head-to-Head With Real Benchmarks
Both are free, open-source, self-hosted PaaS tools. Both install with one curl command. Both give you git-push deploys, auto SSL, and rollbacks. We ran both through the same 7-VPS benchmark and here’s what actually differs.
By Arnas Kazlaus — Software engineer and founder, 15 years experience
TL;DR
Pick Coolify if you want lighter + more mature. Pick Dokploy if you want newer UI + Swarm-native multi-server.
For 80% of users on a single-server setup, Coolify is the lower-risk pick — smaller memory footprint, bigger community, 3 more years of production use. Dokploy is the right call if you already know you’re scaling past one VPS, or you strongly prefer its cleaner UI.
Side-by-side
| Dimension | Coolify | Dokploy |
|---|---|---|
| First released | 2021WINS | 2024 |
| Idle memory footprint | ~500 MBWINS | ~1,500 MB |
| Install architecture | Single container, Docker Compose | Docker Swarm stack |
| Multi-server / clustering | Add secondary servers via UI (newer, less battle-tested) | Native Swarm clustering from day oneWINS |
| UI polish | Dark, functional, improving | Cleaner, more modern out of the boxWINS |
| Install command | curl -fsSL https://cdn.coollabs.io/coolify/install.sh | bash | curl -sSL https://dokploy.com/install.sh | sh |
| Community + docs | Larger Discord, more YouTube tutorials, more Stack Overflow Q&AWINS | Smaller but active; docs are newer and cleaner |
| API + automation | REST API with Laravel Sanctum tokens | REST API with Better-Auth; API keys default to 10 req/day rate limit (toggleable) |
First released: Coolify has 3 more years of production hardening and a bigger Stack Overflow footprint.
Idle memory footprint: Dokploy runs Postgres + Redis + Traefik + itself as persistent Swarm services; Coolify runs a single container.
Install architecture: Coolify is lighter on single-server setups; Dokploy gets multi-server clustering for free once you outgrow one box.
Multi-server / clustering: If you know you'll scale past one VPS, Dokploy's Swarm-first design avoids a future migration.
UI polish: Dokploy's UI is newer and shows it — polished defaults, better onboarding flow. Coolify's UI is catching up.
Install command: Both are one-liner curl-pipe-bash installers. Dokploy's also runs `docker swarm init` as part of setup.
Community + docs: Coolify has the ecosystem lead. If you get stuck on something niche, you're more likely to find an answer.
API + automation: Both expose full REST APIs. Dokploy's default rate limit on API keys catches automation newcomers off guard.
Benchmarks: same 7 VPS providers, both tools
Fresh install on each VPS, measured by the same harness. Deploy p50 is the median of 3 back-to-back nginx:alpine deploys via each tool’s REST API.
Deploy speed (p50, lower is better)
| Provider | Coolify | Dokploy |
|---|---|---|
| Hetzner | 7s | 3s |
| Hostinger | 7s | 3s |
| Vultr | 7s | 3s |
| OVHcloud | 8s | 2s |
| Kamatera | 7s | 3s |
| Contabo | 11s | 5s |
| DigitalOcean | 11s | 4s |
Idle memory footprint (lower is better)
| Provider | Coolify (MB) | Dokploy (MB) |
|---|---|---|
| Hetzner | 1073 | 1505 |
| Hostinger | 1049 | 1508 |
| Vultr | 1170 | 1534 |
| OVHcloud | 1099 | 1521 |
| Kamatera | 944 | 1623 |
| Contabo | 921 | 1213 |
| DigitalOcean | 971 | 1514 |
Dokploy is consistently ~3× heavier at idle because it runs Postgres + Redis + Traefik + itself as Swarm services. Coolify runs a single Laravel container with SQLite.
Install time (seconds, lower is better)
| Provider | Coolify | Dokploy |
|---|---|---|
| Hetzner | 64s | 76s |
| Hostinger | 38s | 85s |
| Vultr | 40s | 113s |
| OVHcloud | 45s | 103s |
| Kamatera | 50s | 133s |
| Contabo | 91s | 141s |
| DigitalOcean | 115s | 185s |
Pick Coolify if...
- You’re running on a 2-4 GB VPS and need the headroom for your apps
- You want the most mature option with the deepest community + Stack Overflow coverage
- You’re on a single server for now and don’t have immediate multi-server plans
- You value stability over newness
Pick Dokploy if...
- You already plan to run multiple servers — Dokploy’s Swarm-native clustering is free; Coolify’s is newer and less proven
- You have a 4-8 GB+ VPS and don’t care about the heavier idle footprint
- You strongly prefer Dokploy’s cleaner, newer UI
- You want a 3-second deploy loop instead of a 7-second one
Frequently asked questions
Coolify or Dokploy — which should I actually pick?
For most side projects and small SaaS, Coolify. It's lighter, more mature, has a bigger community, and runs happily on a 2 GB VPS that would be cramped for Dokploy. Pick Dokploy if you specifically want Docker Swarm multi-server clustering built in, or you prefer its newer UI over Coolify's — but be ready for the ~3× heavier memory footprint.
Is Dokploy production-ready?
Yes for small teams and single-product deployments. We measured a 0% deploy-failure rate across 21 Dokploy deploys in our testing. The caveat: Dokploy is from 2024 and its community is smaller than Coolify's. When you hit an edge case, finding a Stack Overflow answer or Discord thread takes longer.
Can I migrate apps between Coolify and Dokploy?
There's no automated migration. Both tools store app configs in their own internal Postgres database. The practical path is: export environment variables from your Coolify apps, provision a new VPS, install Dokploy, recreate each app using the same Docker image or git repo, re-wire environment vars, switch DNS. Most users with 5-10 apps report 2-4 hours of manual work.
Which one is faster to deploy apps?
In our 7-VPS benchmark, Dokploy wins on raw deploy speed — the median time from "click deploy" to HTTP 200 is 3 seconds across most providers, vs Coolify's 7 seconds. That's because Dokploy uses a pre-running Traefik service that just gets a new route, while Coolify spins up Caddy per app. For infrequent deploys the difference is invisible; for tight dev-loop iteration it matters.
Which one costs more to run?
Neither. Both are free and open source. The cost is the VPS underneath — and that's identical: the same $15/month Hetzner CPX31 runs either tool. Dokploy uses more memory at idle (1.5 GB vs 500 MB), which means on a 2 GB VPS you'll have less headroom for your apps. For a 4 GB or 8 GB VPS, the difference doesn't matter.
Is Dokploy's heavier footprint a real problem?
Only on small VPS plans. On a 2 GB server, Coolify leaves you ~1.3 GB for your apps after its own ~500 MB. Dokploy leaves you only ~400 MB after its 1.5 GB baseline — you'll hit OOM if you deploy much. On 4 GB+, both leave plenty of headroom. Budget 4 GB minimum for Dokploy; 2 GB works for Coolify.
Full review
Best VPS for Coolify
7-provider benchmark for Coolify with editorial picks.
Full review
Best VPS for Dokploy
7-provider benchmark for Dokploy with editorial picks.
Not sure about either?
Coolify alternatives
Dokku, CapRover, Kubero, plus managed escape hatches (Railway, Vercel).