Caddy vs Nginx vs Traefik: Which Reverse Proxy Should You Use?

A reverse proxy sits in front of your app: it terminates HTTPS, routes requests by domain or path, and serves static files. (Reverse Proxy Explained) The three you'll hear about most are Nginx, Caddy and Traefik.

The short version

• Caddy — the easiest. Automatic HTTPS, tiny config. Great for a single server with a few apps.
• Nginx — the industry standard. Fastest to find answers for, most flexible, but HTTPS and config are on you.
• Traefik — best when services come and go in Docker or Kubernetes; it discovers them and routes automatically.

The same site in each

Proxy app.example.com to an app on port 3000, with HTTPS.

Caddy (Caddyfile):

app.example.com {
    reverse_proxy 127.0.0.1:3000
}

That's the whole thing. Caddy obtains and renews a certificate automatically and redirects HTTP to HTTPS. (What Is Caddy?)

Nginx:

server {
    listen 443 ssl;
    server_name app.example.com;
    ssl_certificate     /etc/letsencrypt/live/app.example.com/fullchain.pem;
    ssl_certificate_key /etc/letsencrypt/live/app.example.com/privkey.pem;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:3000;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
    }
}
server {
    listen 80;
    server_name app.example.com;
    return 301 https://$host$request_uri;
}

…plus Certbot to issue and renew the certificate. (Certbot and Let's Encrypt, Nginx Reverse Proxy Configuration)

Traefik (labels on the app's container in Docker Compose):

services:
  app:
    image: myapp
    labels:
      - traefik.enable=true
      - traefik.http.routers.app.rule=Host(`app.example.com`)
      - traefik.http.routers.app.entrypoints=websecure
      - traefik.http.routers.app.tls.certresolver=le
      - traefik.http.services.app.loadbalancer.server.port=3000

…plus Traefik's own static config defining entrypoints and the Let's Encrypt resolver. Start a new container with labels and Traefik routes to it — no proxy restart.

Side by side

	Caddy	Nginx	Traefik
Automatic HTTPS	Built in, by default	Via Certbot or similar	Built in, configured
Config style	Caddyfile (or JSON API)	Config files	Labels / providers + static config
Dynamic discovery	Via API/plugins	Reload on change	Native (Docker, Kubernetes, etc.)
Learning curve	Lowest	Medium	Medium–high
Raw performance	Very good	Excellent	Very good
Community answers	Good	Huge	Good
Written in	Go	C	Go

Performance differences rarely matter for small and medium apps; all three handle far more traffic than a typical app server behind them.

Choose Caddy when

• You run one server with a handful of apps or domains.
• You want HTTPS to be one less thing to think about — including for many customer domains (Caddy supports on-demand TLS for that).
• You value a readable config over every knob.

Choose Nginx when

• You need fine control: caching rules, complex rewrites, rate limiting, tuning. (Nginx Rate Limiting, Nginx Location Blocks and try_files)
• Your team or host already uses it, or you're following guides that assume it.
• You want the largest pool of examples and Stack Overflow answers.

Choose Traefik when

• Your services are containers that start, stop and scale, and you don't want to edit proxy config each time.
• You're on Kubernetes and want an ingress controller with a dashboard and middleware.

Common to all three

• Pass Host, X-Forwarded-For and X-Forwarded-Proto so your app knows the real client and scheme (Caddy and Traefik do this by default).
• Pass WebSocket upgrade headers for apps that need them (Caddy and Traefik handle this automatically; Nginx needs explicit lines).
• For an app and proxy running directly on the same host, bind the app to 127.0.0.1. For separate Docker containers, the app must listen on 0.0.0.0 inside its container so the proxy can reach it over their private Docker network; leave the app port unpublished on the host. (Docker Compose Networking)

The summary

• Caddy: simplest, automatic HTTPS. Nginx: most flexible and widely known. Traefik: automatic routing for containers.
• For a single small server, Caddy is the quickest path to a correct setup.
• Any of them is fine — the mistakes are in exposing the app directly or skipping HTTPS.

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EasySpawn runs a managed reverse proxy with automatic HTTPS in front of every app, so you don't have to pick, configure or renew anything. See how it works or join the waitlist.

Related: What Is Nginx? · How Automatic SSL Works · What Is a Load Balancer? · Coolify vs Dokploy