--- title: "lws vs moby" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/kubernetes-sigs-lws-vs-moby-moby" tools: ["kubernetes-sigs-lws", "moby-moby"] --- # lws vs moby *GraphCanon updated Jul 11, 2026* ## Verdict Pick lws when tags unique to lws: llm-inference, sig-apps; pick moby when tags unique to moby: containers, docker, golang. [lws](https://lws.sigs.k8s.io) reports 754 GitHub stars, 160 forks, and 48 open issues, last pushed Jul 9, 2026. [moby](https://mobyproject.org/) has 72k stars, 19k forks, and 3.8k open issues, last pushed Jul 10, 2026. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [lws's repository](https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/lws) and [moby's repository](https://github.com/moby/moby). | | [lws](/tools/kubernetes-sigs-lws.md) | [moby](/tools/moby-moby.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | LeaderWorkerSet: An API for deploying a group of pods as a unit of replication | The Moby Project - a collaborative project for the container ecosystem to assemble container-based systems | | Stars | 754 | 71,899 | | Forks | 160 | 19,126 | | Open issues | 48 | 3,821 | | Language | Go | Go | | Adopt for | - | - | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 | | Categories | Inference & Serving, LLM Frameworks | Developer Tools, Inference & Serving, LLM Frameworks | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [lws](/tools/kubernetes-sigs-lws.md) | [moby](/tools/moby-moby.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Open issues (now) | 48 | 3.8k | | Security scan | No lockfile | No criticals | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/kubernetes-sigs-lws/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/moby-moby/trust.md) | ## Choose when ### Choose lws if… - Tags unique to lws: llm-inference, sig-apps. - Leaner open-issue backlog (48). ### Choose moby if… - Tags unique to moby: containers, docker, golang. - Also covers Developer Tools. - moby ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment. ## When NOT to use lws - Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic. - LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. ## When NOT to use moby - 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. - LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. ## Common questions ### What is the difference between lws and moby? lws: LeaderWorkerSet: An API for deploying a group of pods as a unit of replication. 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 lws over moby? Choose lws over moby when Tags unique to lws: llm-inference, sig-apps; Leaner open-issue backlog (48). ### When should I choose moby over lws? Choose moby over lws when Tags unique to moby: containers, docker, golang; Also covers Developer Tools; moby ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment. ### When should I avoid lws? Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic. LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. ### When should I avoid moby? 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. LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. ### Is lws or moby more popular on GitHub? moby has more GitHub stars (71,899 vs 754). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are lws and moby open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (lws: Apache-2.0, moby: Apache-2.0). ### Where can I find alternatives to lws or moby? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [lws alternatives](/tools/kubernetes-sigs-lws/alternatives) and [moby alternatives](/tools/moby-moby/alternatives) ([lws markdown twin](/tools/kubernetes-sigs-lws/alternatives.md), [moby markdown twin](/tools/moby-moby/alternatives.md)), 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](/compare/kubernetes-sigs-lws-vs-moby-moby.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, lws or moby? lws: Very 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 lws and moby? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [lws trust report](/tools/kubernetes-sigs-lws/trust); [moby trust report](/tools/moby-moby/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=kubernetes-sigs-lws`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=kubernetes-sigs-lws) - LLM index: [/llms.txt](/llms.txt) - Full corpus: [/llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt) _GraphCanon - The knowledge graph for AI development. https://www.graphcanon.com/_