Best web servers
HTTP servers and reverse proxies you run yourself to serve websites and route traffic to apps, from Apache and nginx to Caddy.
5 apps, ordered by visits from AppBreakup and how often our research lists each one as an alternative. Open any app to see its alternatives.
All web servers
- Alternatives to Squid
Long-running open-source caching proxy for HTTP and HTTPS traffic.
Open sourceSelf-hostableLinux, Windows, Self-hosted - Alternatives to Envoy
Open-source edge and service proxy with dynamic configuration, built for microservice architectures.
Open sourceSelf-hostableLinux, macOS, Self-hosted - HaAlternatives to HAProxy
Free, open-source load balancer and reverse proxy for TCP and HTTP traffic.
Open sourceSelf-hostableLinux, Self-hosted - Alternatives to lighttpd
Lightweight open-source web server built for low memory and CPU use.
Open sourceLinux, Self-hosted - Alternatives to Internet Information Services (IIS)
Microsoft's web server built into Windows Server, the usual host for ASP.NET sites.
FreeSelf-hostableWindows, Self-hosted
Our picks by need
Common questions
What are the best web servers?
Based on how often our research lists them as alternatives and visits from AppBreakup, the leading web servers right now are Squid, Envoy, HAProxy, lighttpd and Internet Information Services (IIS).
Are there free web servers?
Yes. Squid (open source), Envoy (open source), HAProxy (open source), lighttpd (open source) and Internet Information Services (IIS) (free) have a free option, out of 5 free or freemium apps we track.
Which web servers are open source?
Squid, Envoy and HAProxy.