# nginx-proxy

Automated Nginx Reverse Proxy for Docker

Repository: https://github.com/nginx-proxy/nginx-proxy
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/nginx-proxy
Language: Python
License: MIT
License Family: permissive
Topics: nginx, docker, docker-gen, reverse-proxy
Last push: 2026-08-26T15:42:48+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 97/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 99, release rhythm 93, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 4503, "days_push": 7, "days_rel": 48, "gap_med": 25.0, "n_releases_24m": 17}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 19897, forks 3046 (observed 2026-08-28T04:11:29.368851+00:00)

## What it is
nginx-proxy is an automated Nginx reverse proxy for Docker that uses docker-gen to generate Nginx configuration and reload it as containers start and stop. Containers are routed by simply setting a VIRTUAL_HOST environment variable, with an optional acme-companion for automatic TLS certificates.

## Use cases
- route multiple docker containers to subdomains on one host
- automatically configure nginx for containers as they start and stop
- run a reverse proxy in front of dockerized web apps
- serve multiple services on a single server with virtual hosts
- automate ssl certificates for docker containers
- self-host several web apps behind one entrypoint

## When to choose
- you run many dockerized web services on one host and want automatic virtual-host routing
- you want zero-touch nginx config generation tied to container lifecycle
- you need automatic Let's Encrypt certificates via the companion container

## When to avoid
- you need a full API gateway with auth, rate limiting, or observability features
- you don't use Docker or prefer declarative ingress controllers like Traefik or Kubernetes ingress
- you need fine-grained load-balancing policies beyond simple round-robin

## Facets
- artifact type: service
- maturity: active
- function: proxy, http-server, deployment, container-runtime, configuration-management
- domain: web-development, self-hosted, infrastructure-as-code
- platform: self-hosted
- tags: nginx, reverse-proxy, docker-gen, virtual-hosts, automated-configuration, letsencrypt, acme, devops, containers, docker, linux, web-server

## Member repositories
- nginx-proxy/nginx-proxy (main) score 97
- nginx-proxy/acme-companion (plugin) score 92
- nginx-proxy/docker-gen (backend) score 93

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:11:29.368851+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-29T16:59:24.086742+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/nginx-proxy/nginx-proxy (fetched 2026-08-28T04:11:29.368851+00:00, sha 1cce5019279d)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.