# Ktor vs Spring Boot

| Attribute | Ktor | Spring Boot |
|---|---|---|
| **Vioscale score** | 57.8 (49% (low)) | 60.5 (54% (medium)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | 57 | 100 |
| adoption.dependent_repos | 1,171 | 54,477 |
| adoption.github_stars | 14,503 | 81,366 |
| deployment.options | - | `{"self_hosted":true}` |
| description.long | Ktor is an open-source framework for creating asynchronous server and client applications, from microservices to HTTP clients. Built on Kotlin and coroutines, it emphasizes simplicity, lightweight design, and extensibility. | A framework for creating stand-alone, production-grade Spring applications with minimal configuration. Features embedded web servers (Tomcat, Jetty, Undertow), opinionated starter dependencies, automatic configuration, and production-ready features such as metrics and health checks. |
| features.capabilities | `{"language":"Kotlin"}` | `{"language":"Java","api_routes":true,"server_components":true}` |
| language.primary | Kotlin | Java |
| license.spdx | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| pricing | `{"type":"open_source","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://ktor.io/","retrievedAt":"2026-08-13T23:07:06.179Z"}` | - |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | - |
| pricing.model | open_source | commercial |
| pricing.price_level | free | - |
| release.cadence_days | 27 | - |
| release.history | `[{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.5.2","date":"2026-08-04T12:08:07Z","type":"stable","version":"3.5.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.5.1","date":"2026-06-29T08:05:31Z","type":"stable","version":"3.5.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.5.0","date":"2026-05-18T06:57:48Z","type":"stable","version":"3.5.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.4.3","date":"2026-04-23T11:20:32Z","type":"stable","version":"3.4.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.4.2","date":"2026-03-30T13:37:19Z","type":"stable","version":"3.4.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.4.1","date":"2026-03-04T14:20:52Z","type":"stable","version":"3.4.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.4.0","date":"2026-01-23T08:55:39Z","type":"stable","version":"3.4.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.3.3","date":"2025-11-27T12:13:53Z","type":"stable","version":"3.3.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.3.2","date":"2025-11-05T14:08:06Z","type":"stable","version":"3.3.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.3.1","date":"2025-10-10T06:19:56Z","type":"stable","version":"3.3.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.3.0","date":"2025-09-12T11:59:39Z","type":"stable","version":"3.3.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.2.3","date":"2025-07-29T14:18:09Z","type":"stable","version":"3.2.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.2.2","date":"2025-07-14T11:45:21Z","type":"stable","version":"3.2.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.2.1","date":"2025-07-04T08:57:57Z","type":"stable","version":"3.2.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.2.0","date":"2025-06-13T12:19:28Z","type":"stable","version":"3.2.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.1.3","date":"2025-05-06T11:52:28Z","type":"stable","version":"3.1.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.1.2","date":"2025-03-28T09:27:52Z","type":"stable","version":"3.1.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.1.1","date":"2025-02-25T11:49:42Z","type":"stable","version":"3.1.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.1.0","date":"2025-02-12T11:44:49Z","type":"stable","version":"3.1.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/ktorio/ktor/releases/tag/3.0.3","date":"2024-12-19T14:25:41Z","type":"stable","version":"3.0.3"}]` | `[{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v4.2.0-M1","date":"2026-08-20T20:09:59Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v4.2.0-M1"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v4.1.1","date":"2026-08-20T20:02:36Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.1.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v4.0.8","date":"2026-08-21T02:39:58Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.0.8"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v3.5.16","date":"2026-06-25T11:00:26Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.5.16"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v4.1.0","date":"2026-06-10T18:21:42Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.1.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v4.0.7","date":"2026-06-10T18:50:46Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.0.7"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v3.5.15","date":"2026-06-10T19:30:46Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.5.15"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v4.1.0-RC1","date":"2026-04-23T15:54:20Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v4.1.0-RC1"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v4.0.6","date":"2026-04-23T15:39:24Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.0.6"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v3.5.14","date":"2026-04-23T16:01:25Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.5.14"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v4.1.0-M4","date":"2026-03-26T11:04:53Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v4.1.0-M4"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v4.0.5","date":"2026-03-26T11:05:31Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.0.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v3.5.13","date":"2026-03-26T11:03:01Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.5.13"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v4.1.0-M3","date":"2026-03-20T02:49:46Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v4.1.0-M3"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v4.0.4","date":"2026-03-19T13:51:25Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.0.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v3.5.12","date":"2026-03-19T14:01:08Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.5.12"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v4.1.0-M2","date":"2026-02-19T18:05:50Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v4.1.0-M2"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v4.0.3","date":"2026-02-19T14:02:24Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.0.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v3.5.11","date":"2026-02-19T11:51:10Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.5.11"},{"url":"https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-boot/releases/tag/v4.1.0-M1","date":"2026-01-22T17:13:17Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v4.1.0-M1"}]` |
| reliability.status_page | - | yes |
| security.disclosure_policy | - | yes |
| security.scorecard | 4.6 | 6.8 |
| security.vulnerabilities | `{"count":1,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=maven&package_name=io.ktor%3Aktor-client-cio&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":"LOW"}` | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=maven&package_name=org.springframework.boot%3Aspring-boot-starter-data-redis&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` |

## Capabilities (Web Frameworks)

| Capability | Ktor | Spring Boot |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Core** |  |  |
| Rendering model | - | - |
| File-based routing | - | - |
| Language | Kotlin | Java |
| **Rendering** |  |  |
| Server components | - | ✓ |
| Streaming SSR | - | - |
| **Fullstack** |  |  |
| Built-in API / backend routes | - | ✓ |
| **DX** |  |  |
| First-class TypeScript | - | - |
| Fast refresh / HMR | - | - |
| **Deployment** |  |  |
| Edge runtime support | - | - |

*Source: Vioscale. Generated 2026-09-01T17:49:13.909Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*