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Cloud · head to head

CapRover vs Spring Cloud Gateway

CapRover logo

CapRover

Cloud

Free self-hosted platform built on Docker Swarm with a dashboard and automatic certificates

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Spring Cloud Gateway logo

Spring Cloud Gateway

APIs

API gateway built on Project Reactor for building microservices

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: CapRover since June 2026 one pseudonymous account wrote 97 of roughly 100 commits and the next human contributor wrote one, so there is no identifiable person or company to contract with, escalate to or hold responsible.; Spring Cloud Gateway released under the Apache 2.0 license, free and open source with no commercial tier
  • They diverge on capability: CapRover covers One-click applications, Spring Cloud Gateway covers Routing.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CapRover and Spring Cloud Gateway actually diverge.

Attributes where CapRover and Spring Cloud Gateway differ
AttributeCapRoverSpring Cloud Gateway
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feeopen-source
PlatformsWeb, Linux, Docker, CLI, Self-hostedJava, Spring Boot
CategoryCloudAPIs
FoundedUnknown1998

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in CapRover

  • One-click applications
  • Automatic certificates
  • Web dashboard
  • Multiple deploy paths
  • Docker Swarm clustering
  • Custom nginx configuration

Only in Spring Cloud Gateway

  • Routing
  • Path Rewriting
  • Circuit Breaker
  • Spring Boot
  • Spring Security
  • Spring Cloud
  • Java support
  • Spring Boot support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

CapRover

  • Running a personal server or homelab with several applications behind automatic certificatesnot Spring Cloud Gateway
  • A two person team that wants a dashboard rather than a terminal for deployments on one boxnot Spring Cloud Gateway
  • Standing up one-click databases and internal tools without writing Compose filesnot Spring Cloud Gateway
  • Hosting client demos cheaply where downtime is inconvenient rather than expensivenot Spring Cloud Gateway

Spring Cloud Gateway

  • API Developmentnot CapRover
  • API Gatewaynot CapRover
  • API Testingnot CapRover
  • API Documentationnot CapRover
  • Microservicesnot CapRover

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

CapRover

  • Since June 2026 one pseudonymous account wrote 97 of roughly 100 commits and the next human contributor wrote one, so there is no identifiable person or company to contract with, escalate to or hold responsible.
  • Donations over the last twelve months totalled 285 US dollars and there is no commercial tier, so no paid support exists at any price and no maintenance commitment is funded.
  • The LICENSE file is Apache 2.0 with a superseding appendix that bans redistributing a paid version and refers to paid features that do not yet exist, and GitHub cannot classify it, so the terms already anticipate a commercial change of direction.
  • Releases arrive in bursts with an eleven month gap between September 2023 and August 2024 and two further gaps of about six months since, so there is no basis for assuming a security fix will land promptly.
  • The backup feature is documented as experimental, covers only the CapRover configuration directory and explicitly excludes persistent volumes and container images, so every database has to be dumped separately with its container stopped.

Spring Cloud Gateway

  • Released under the Apache 2.0 license, free and open source with no commercial tier

Pricing, plan by plan

CapRover

Free
  • CapRoverFree
    • No paid tier and no hosted offering
    • Unlimited applications, servers and users
    • Community support through Slack and GitHub

Spring Cloud Gateway

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Core Spring Cloud Gateway
    • Community support

Which should you pick?

Choose CapRover if

  • You need one-click applications.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Linux, Docker, CLI, Self-hosted.
  • You also want automatic certificates.
CapRover review

Choose Spring Cloud Gateway if

  • You need routing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Java, Spring Boot.
  • You also want path rewriting.
Spring Cloud Gateway review

Questions people ask

Is CapRover or Spring Cloud Gateway better?
Neither clearly leads. CapRover starts at Free and Spring Cloud Gateway at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, CapRover or Spring Cloud Gateway?
CapRover starts at Free and Spring Cloud Gateway at Free.
Does CapRover or Spring Cloud Gateway run on more platforms?
CapRover runs on Web, Linux, Docker, CLI, Self-hosted. Spring Cloud Gateway runs on Java, Spring Boot.
Can I use CapRover for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is CapRover best used for?
CapRover is most often used for running a personal server or homelab with several applications behind automatic certificates, a two person team that wants a dashboard rather than a terminal for deployments on one box, standing up one-click databases and internal tools without writing compose files, hosting client demos cheaply where downtime is inconvenient rather than expensive. Of those, running a personal server or homelab with several applications behind automatic certificates and a two person team that wants a dashboard rather than a terminal for deployments on one box are not what Spring Cloud Gateway is typically brought in for.
What can CapRover do that Spring Cloud Gateway cannot?
CapRover covers One-click applications, Automatic certificates, Web dashboard, Multiple deploy paths. Spring Cloud Gateway covers Routing, Path Rewriting, Circuit Breaker, Spring Boot.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

CapRover: Does CapRover cost anything?

No. There is no paid tier and no hosted version. The only income is donations, which came to 285 US dollars over the last twelve months.

Spring Cloud Gateway: Is Spring Cloud Gateway free?

Yes, Spring Cloud Gateway is free and open-source software. It is part of the Spring ecosystem and available through GitHub repositories with open-source dependencies like spring-cloud-starter-gateway-server-webflux and spring-cloud-starter-gateway-server-webmvc.

Source
CapRover: Is the licence really Apache 2.0?

Not quite. The LICENSE file is Apache 2.0 plus an appendix that supersedes it in case of conflict, forbidding modification of paid features and redistribution of a paid version. GitHub does not recognise the result as a standard licence.

Spring Cloud Gateway: What enterprise support is available for Spring Cloud Gateway?

Tanzu Spring provides optional enterprise support including Day 0 access to security patches for organizations requiring guaranteed support, but specific pricing is not published on the Spring Cloud Gateway project page.

Source
CapRover: Does the backup feature protect my databases?

No. It backs up the CapRover configuration directory only and explicitly excludes persistent directories and container images. You have to dump each database yourself with the container stopped.

CapRover: Can I move off Docker Swarm later?

Not without rebuilding. CapRover is architecturally tied to Swarm, so outgrowing it means migrating applications to a different platform rather than switching a scheduler.

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