vioscaleAI
Comparison

Dokku vs Kamal

On the evidence we track, Dokku leads this comparison with a composite score of 59/100. Scores are only directly comparable because these tools share a category; the full breakdown and every source is below.

Dokku full profile →Kamal full profile →
Machine formatsMarkdownJSONGraphQLMarkdown is open. JSON and GraphQL need a free key.
★Dokku59
Kamal50
Score
vioscaleAI score
Dokku59 / 100medium · 54%
Kamal50 / 100low · 24%
Pricing
Free tier
Dokku✓
Kamal–
Model
Price level
Dokkufree
Kamalfree
Transparent
Dokku✓
Kamal–
Integrations
Count
Dokku35
Kamal–
Security
Scorecard
Dokku5.4
Kamal–
Vulnerabilities
Adoption
Dependent repos
Dokku20
Kamal3
Github stars
Dokku32,157
Kamal14,634
Activity
Commits last 30d
Dokku100
Kamal29
Release
Cadence days
Dokku2
Kamal19
History
License
Spdx
DokkuMIT
KamalMIT
Language
Primary
DokkuGo
KamalRuby
Market
Availability
DokkuAvailable worldwide
Kamal–
Content
Faq
Dokku6 items
Kamal5 items

Features

The capabilities each product documents. These tools do not share a category taxonomy, so this aligns what each vendor states rather than a normalised feature set.

Declared feature comparison
FeatureDokkuKamal
Autoscalingnone-
Build systembuildpacks-
Cli and api✓-
Container deploy✓-
Custom domains tls✓-
Edge cdn✗-
Env secrets✓-
Git push deploy✓-
Hostingself-
Managed databases✓-
Preview deploys✗-
Regionssingle-
Rollbacks✗-
RuntimesMultiple languages via Heroku buildpack auto-detection-

What each one is

The product in its own terms, so the numbers below have context.

Dokku

Leader

Dokku is a self-hosted deployment platform that enables you to build, deploy, and scale applications using Docker and Heroku-compatible buildpacks. You can push code via Git to your own Dokku server, and it will automatically build and run your application in isolated containers, providing a Heroku-like experience on hardware you control.

Independently observed

Kamal

An open-source deployment tool that enables zero-downtime releases of containerized web applications, supporting deployment from physical servers to cloud VMs with multi-server orchestration via SSH.

Independently observed

Pricing

List pricing as published by each vendor, with the date we read it. Always verify at the source before you buy.

Dokku

Leader
Open sourceFree tier

Free open source. Dokku Pro available (pricing not disclosed).

  • Open SourceFree
    • Git push deployment
    • Buildpack/Dockerfile support
    • Docker container management
    • Environment variables
    • Domain/SSL configuration
    • +4 more
as of verify ↗

Kamal

Open source
as of verify ↗

Platform & deployment

Where each product runs and how it can be hosted. A dash means undocumented, not unsupported.

Platforms
macOS
Dokku✗
Kamal✓
Linux
Dokku✗
Kamal✓
CLI
Dokku✓
Kamal✓
Deployment
Cloud / SaaS
Dokku✗
Kamal✓
Self-hosted
Dokku✓
Kamal✗
On-premise
Dokku✗
Kamal✓

Integrations

What each product connects to. Counts come from the vendor's own integration directory where one exists.

Dokku

Leader
20 total
  • Docker
  • Heroku Buildpacks
  • nginx
  • Heroku
  • Git
  • GitHub
  • Slack
  • Airbrake
  • Tailscale
  • PostgreSQL
  • MySQL
  • Redis
  • RabbitMQ
  • CouchDB
  • Elasticsearch
  • RethinkDB
  • MongoDB
  • MariaDB
  • Clickhouse
  • Varnish
Independently observed

Kamal

Not documented yet.

Still deciding?

Dokku or Kamal: which one depends on you

A composite score cannot know your constraints. Describe them and both get re-weighted against what you actually need, with the evidence behind every position.

Free to run, no account needed to start. How the evaluation works

Comparison generated from independently-sourced facts. Every value links to its source and retrieval date. See the method.