Comparison
kong vs moby
Verdict
Pick kong when kong is primarily Lua; moby is Go; pick moby when moby is primarily Go; kong is Lua.
Markdown twin · kong alternatives · moby alternatives
GraphCanon updated today
Trust & integrity
| Signal | kong | moby |
|---|---|---|
| Maintenance | Active (10d since push) As of today · github_public_v1 | Very active (1d since push) As of today · github_public_v1 |
| Provenance | Not a fork · Organization account As of today · github_public_v1 | Not a fork · Organization account As of today · github_public_v1 |
| Security (OSV) | No MCP manifest As of today · mcp_manifest | No criticals As of today · osv@v1 |
Tagline
- kong
- 🦍 The API and AI Gateway
- moby
- The Moby Project - a collaborative project for the container ecosystem to assemble container-based systems
Stars
- kong
- 44k
- moby
- 72k
Forks
- kong
- 5.2k
- moby
- 19k
Open issues
- kong
- 155
- moby
- 3.8k
Language
- kong
- Lua
- moby
- Go
Adopt for
- kong
- -
- moby
- -
Persona
- kong
- -
- moby
- -
Runtime
- kong
- -
- moby
- -
License
- kong
- Apache-2.0
- moby
- Apache-2.0
Last pushed
- kong
- Jul 1, 2026
- moby
- Jul 10, 2026
Categories
- kong
- LLM Frameworks, Developer Tools
- moby
- LLM Frameworks, Developer Tools, Inference & Serving
Trust and health
Maintenance
- kong
- Active (82%)
- moby
- Very active (96%)
Days since push
- kong
- 10d
- moby
- 1d
Open issues (now)
- kong
- 155
- moby
- 3.8k
Security scan
- kong
- No MCP manifest
- moby
- No criticals
Full report
- kong
- Trust report
- moby
- Trust report
Choose kong if…
- kong is primarily Lua; moby is Go.
- Tags unique to kong: api-management, cloud-native, ai, artificial-intelligence.
- Leaner open-issue backlog (155).
When NOT to use kong
- LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves.
- Developer Tools: A gateway is overkill when you're pinned to a single provider and model.
Choose moby if…
- moby is primarily Go; kong is Lua.
- Tags unique to moby: go, docker, golang, containers.
- Also covers Inference & Serving.
- moby ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment.
When NOT to use moby
- LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves.
- Developer Tools: A gateway is overkill when you're pinned to a single provider and model.
- Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic.
Explore
Sources
Every stat on this page traces to a dated GitHub sync, license file, enrichment field, or trust scan.
- GitHub stars (Kong/kong) · observed Jul 11, 2026
- GitHub forks (Kong/kong) · observed Jul 11, 2026
- Last push (Kong/kong) · observed Jul 1, 2026
- License file (Apache-2.0) · observed Jul 11, 2026
- Trust scan (lockfile / OSV) · observed Jul 11, 2026
- GitHub stars (moby/moby) · observed Jul 11, 2026
- GitHub forks (moby/moby) · observed Jul 11, 2026
- Last push (moby/moby) · observed Jul 10, 2026
- License file (Apache-2.0) · observed Jul 11, 2026
- Trust scan (lockfile / OSV) · observed Jul 11, 2026
GitHub stars on cards: kong 44k · moby 72k (synced Jul 11, 2026).
Common questions
- What is the difference between kong and moby?
- kong: 🦍 The API and AI Gateway. moby: The Moby Project - a collaborative project for the container ecosystem to assemble container-based systems. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories.
- When should I choose kong over moby?
- Choose kong over moby when kong is primarily Lua; moby is Go; Tags unique to kong: api-management, cloud-native, ai, artificial-intelligence; Leaner open-issue backlog (155).
- When should I choose moby over kong?
- Choose moby over kong when moby is primarily Go; kong is Lua; Tags unique to moby: go, docker, golang, containers; Also covers Inference & Serving; moby ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment.
- When should I avoid kong?
- LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. Developer Tools: A gateway is overkill when you're pinned to a single provider and model.
- When should I avoid moby?
- LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. Developer Tools: A gateway is overkill when you're pinned to a single provider and model. Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic.
- Is kong or moby more popular on GitHub?
- moby has more GitHub stars (71,899 vs 43,768). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints.
- Are kong and moby open source?
- Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (kong: Apache-2.0, moby: Apache-2.0).
- Where can I find alternatives to kong or moby?
- GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at kong alternatives and moby alternatives (kong markdown twin, moby markdown twin), ranked by typed relationship edges rather than popularity votes.
- Is there a machine-readable version of this comparison?
- Yes. The markdown twin at this comparison mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers.
- Which is better maintained, kong or moby?
- kong: Active. moby: Very active. Compare maintenance labels, days since push, and release cadence in the trust section below - stars alone do not measure maintenance.
- Where are the full trust reports for kong and moby?
- GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: kong trust report; moby trust report.