Caddy vs Traefik: Reverse Proxies Compared

Quick Verdict

Caddy is the better choice for most self-hosters. It gives you automatic HTTPS with zero configuration, a dead-simple Caddyfile syntax, and rock-solid defaults out of the box. Pick Traefik if you run a dynamic Docker environment where containers spin up and down frequently — its label-based auto-discovery eliminates the need to touch config files when you add or remove services. For a static homelab with a handful of services, Caddy wins on simplicity. For a dynamic container fleet, Traefik wins on automation.

Updated March 2026: Verified with latest Docker images and configurations.

Overview

Both Caddy and Traefik are modern, Go-based reverse proxies built for the container era. They both handle automatic HTTPS via Let’s Encrypt, support HTTP/2 and HTTP/3, and can reverse proxy your self-hosted services with TLS termination. But they solve the problem differently.

Caddy is a general-purpose web server that doubles as a reverse proxy. It was built around the idea that HTTPS should be automatic and config should be minimal. You write a Caddyfile with a few lines, and Caddy handles certificate provisioning, renewal, OCSP stapling, and HTTP-to-HTTPS redirects without you thinking about it.

Traefik is a cloud-native edge router built specifically for dynamic, containerized environments. It watches your Docker daemon (or Kubernetes API, or Consul catalog) and automatically discovers new services as containers start. You configure routing via Docker labels on each container rather than a central config file.

Feature Comparison

Feature	Caddy	Traefik
Language	Go	Go
License	Apache-2.0	MIT
Automatic HTTPS	Built-in, zero-config (Let’s Encrypt + ZeroSSL)	Built-in (Let’s Encrypt, ACME) — requires explicit config
Configuration	Caddyfile or JSON API	YAML, TOML, CLI flags, or Docker labels
Docker auto-discovery	No — requires manual config per service	Yes — reads Docker labels automatically
Kubernetes support	Via plugin (Ingress Controller)	Native (Ingress Controller + CRDs)
Dashboard	No built-in dashboard	Built-in web dashboard with metrics
Middleware	Limited built-in (headers, compression, rate limiting)	Extensive middleware chain (auth, rate limiting, circuit breakers, retry, headers, IP allowlisting)
HTTP/3	Yes, enabled by default	Yes, requires explicit opt-in
Load balancing	Round-robin, least connections, IP hash	Round-robin, weighted round-robin, sticky sessions
Hot reload	Yes — caddy reload or API call	Yes — watches Docker events / file changes in real-time
RAM usage (idle)	~30 MB	~80 MB
Binary size	~40 MB single binary	~100 MB Docker image
Config complexity	Very low — minimal Caddyfile syntax	Moderate — multiple config layers (static + dynamic)
Plugin ecosystem	Extensible via Go modules (DNS providers, auth, etc.)	Extensive plugin catalog (paid enterprise plugins available)
Wildcard certificates	Yes, via DNS challenge plugins	Yes, via DNS challenge providers
TCP/UDP proxying	Yes (layer 4 module)	Yes (native)

Docker Compose Setup

Caddy

Create a docker-compose.yml:

services:
  caddy:
    image: caddy:2.11.2
    container_name: caddy
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "80:80"       # HTTP — used for ACME challenges and redirects
      - "443:443"     # HTTPS
      - "443:443/udp" # HTTP/3 (QUIC)
    volumes:
      - ./Caddyfile:/etc/caddy/Caddyfile:ro  # Your config file
      - caddy_data:/data      # TLS certificates and persistent state
      - caddy_config:/config  # Auto-generated config cache
    networks:
      - proxy

volumes:
  caddy_data:
  caddy_config:

networks:
  proxy:
    name: proxy
    driver: bridge

Create a Caddyfile alongside it:

# Global options
{
    email [email protected]  # CHANGE THIS — used for Let's Encrypt registration
}

# Example: reverse proxy to a service
app.example.com {
    reverse_proxy app-container:8080
}

# Add more sites as needed
another.example.com {
    reverse_proxy another-container:3000
}

Start Caddy:

docker compose up -d

That is the entire setup. Caddy automatically provisions TLS certificates for every domain in the Caddyfile, redirects HTTP to HTTPS, and begins proxying traffic. No certificate config, no resolver blocks, no challenge setup.

Traefik

Create a docker-compose.yml:

services:
  traefik:
    image: traefik:v3.6.10
    container_name: traefik
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "80:80"    # HTTP — entrypoint for ACME challenges and redirects
      - "443:443"  # HTTPS
    volumes:
      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro  # Docker socket for auto-discovery
      - ./traefik.yml:/etc/traefik/traefik.yml:ro     # Static config
      - traefik_certs:/letsencrypt                     # Certificate storage
    networks:
      - proxy
    labels:
      # Enable the Traefik dashboard (optional — remove in production)
      - "traefik.enable=true"
      - "traefik.http.routers.dashboard.rule=Host(`traefik.example.com`)"
      - "traefik.http.routers.dashboard.entrypoints=websecure"
      - "traefik.http.routers.dashboard.tls.certresolver=letsencrypt"
      - "traefik.http.routers.dashboard.service=api@internal"

volumes:
  traefik_certs:

networks:
  proxy:
    name: proxy
    driver: bridge

Create a traefik.yml static config file:

# API and dashboard
api:
  dashboard: true

# Entrypoints
entryPoints:
  web:
    address: ":80"
    http:
      redirections:
        entryPoint:
          to: websecure
          scheme: https
  websecure:
    address: ":443"

# Certificate resolvers
certificatesResolvers:
  letsencrypt:
    acme:
      email: [email protected]  # CHANGE THIS — used for Let's Encrypt registration
      storage: /letsencrypt/acme.json
      httpChallenge:
        entryPoint: web

# Docker provider — watches for containers with traefik labels
providers:
  docker:
    endpoint: "unix:///var/run/docker.sock"
    exposedByDefault: false  # Only proxy containers with traefik.enable=true
    network: proxy

Start Traefik:

docker compose up -d

Traefik now watches the Docker socket for containers with Traefik labels and automatically configures routing and TLS for them.

Configuration Examples

Here is how you reverse proxy a service (say, Uptime Kuma on port 3001) with each tool.

Caddy — Adding a Service

Add two lines to your Caddyfile:

uptime.example.com {
    reverse_proxy uptime-kuma:3001
}

Reload:

docker exec caddy caddy reload --config /etc/caddy/Caddyfile

Done. Certificate provisioned, HTTPS enforced, traffic proxied.

Traefik — Adding a Service

Add Docker labels to the service’s docker-compose.yml:

services:
  uptime-kuma:
    image: louislam/uptime-kuma:2.2.1
    container_name: uptime-kuma
    restart: unless-stopped
    volumes:
      - uptime_data:/app/data
    networks:
      - proxy
    labels:
      - "traefik.enable=true"
      - "traefik.http.routers.uptime.rule=Host(`uptime.example.com`)"
      - "traefik.http.routers.uptime.entrypoints=websecure"
      - "traefik.http.routers.uptime.tls.certresolver=letsencrypt"
      - "traefik.http.services.uptime.loadbalancer.server.port=3001"

volumes:
  uptime_data:

networks:
  proxy:
    external: true

Start the container, and Traefik detects it automatically — no reload needed.

The trade-off is clear: Caddy requires editing one file and running a reload. Traefik requires no central file changes but demands five labels on every service. For a handful of services, Caddy’s approach is simpler. At 20+ services with frequent changes, Traefik’s approach scales better because adding a service never touches the proxy config.

Installation Complexity

Caddy is easier to get running. Install it, write a Caddyfile with your domains and upstream addresses, start it. Automatic HTTPS works immediately with no additional configuration. The learning curve is minimal — the Caddyfile syntax is intuitive and well-documented.

Traefik has a steeper initial setup. You need to understand the distinction between static configuration (entrypoints, providers, certificate resolvers) and dynamic configuration (routers, services, middleware — defined via labels or files). The concepts of entrypoints, routers, services, and middleware form a pipeline you need to reason about. Once you understand this model, adding services is straightforward, but the initial ramp-up takes longer.

If you have never set up a reverse proxy before, start with Caddy. You will have working HTTPS in under five minutes.

Performance and Resource Usage

Both are written in Go, both are fast, and neither will be a bottleneck for a self-hosted setup serving a few thousand requests per minute.

Metric	Caddy	Traefik
Idle RAM	~30 MB	~80 MB
RAM under moderate load	~50–80 MB	~120–200 MB
CPU usage	Negligible for homelab traffic	Negligible for homelab traffic
Startup time	< 1 second	2–3 seconds (Docker socket scan)
TLS handshake speed	Fast (Go crypto/tls)	Fast (Go crypto/tls)

Traefik uses more memory because it maintains service discovery state, the dashboard metrics backend, and its middleware pipeline in memory. For a homelab or small VPS, neither consumes enough resources to matter. On a Raspberry Pi with 1 GB of RAM, Caddy’s lower footprint gives it an edge.

Community and Support

Aspect	Caddy	Traefik
GitHub stars	~60k	~53k
Release cadence	Regular, stable releases	Frequent releases, active development
Documentation	Excellent — clear, concise, well-organized	Good but dense — steep learning curve in docs
Community forum	Active Caddy community forum	Active GitHub Discussions and community forum
Commercial support	Caddy offers enterprise licensing	Traefik Labs offers Traefik Enterprise (paid)
Plugin ecosystem	Growing — DNS providers, auth modules	Extensive — many built-in and third-party middlewares

Both have active communities and responsive maintainers. Caddy’s documentation is more approachable for beginners. Traefik’s documentation is comprehensive but assumes familiarity with cloud-native concepts.

Use Cases

Choose Caddy If…

• You want the simplest possible reverse proxy setup with automatic HTTPS
• You have a small to medium number of services that change infrequently
• You prefer editing a single, readable config file over Docker labels
• You want a lightweight general-purpose web server (file serving, PHP, etc.) alongside reverse proxying
• You run on constrained hardware (Raspberry Pi, low-RAM VPS)
• You value minimal configuration and sane defaults over granular control
• You are new to reverse proxies and want something that works immediately

Choose Traefik If…

• You run a dynamic Docker environment where containers are frequently added and removed
• You want zero-touch proxy configuration — add labels to a container and it is proxied automatically
• You need a built-in dashboard to visualize your routing topology
• You need advanced middleware (circuit breakers, retry logic, rate limiting per route, IP allowlisting)
• You plan to move to Kubernetes and want a reverse proxy that works across Docker and K8s
• You manage many services (20+) and want routing defined alongside each service, not in a central file
• You need canary deployments, weighted routing, or traffic mirroring

Final Verdict

Caddy is the right choice for most self-hosters. Its automatic HTTPS, minimal config, and low resource usage make it the fastest path from “I have a Docker container” to “it is securely accessible on my domain.” The Caddyfile is readable enough that you can hand it to someone who has never seen it and they will understand the routing in seconds.

Pick Traefik if your setup is genuinely dynamic. If you are running a Docker Swarm cluster, frequently spinning up new services, or heading toward Kubernetes, Traefik’s auto-discovery model pays for itself. The label-based configuration keeps routing logic co-located with each service, which scales better organizationally when you have dozens of containers.

For a typical homelab — five to fifteen services, updated occasionally — Caddy is less config, less complexity, and less memory. There is no reason to reach for Traefik’s power if you are not going to use it.

Related

• How to Self-Host Caddy
• How to Self-Host Traefik
• Best Self-Hosted Reverse Proxies
• How to Self-Host Nginx Proxy Manager
• Reverse Proxy Explained
• Docker Compose Guide