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Comparison · Infra & APIs

Caddy vs Clair

A side-by-side editorial comparison of Caddy and Clair — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.

Caddy vs Clair: at a glance

FeatureCaddyClair
SectorInfra & APIsInfra & APIs
Velocity score0.02.5
Sparks · 30d00
Top themesweb-server, tls, encrypted-client-hello, open-source-governancecontainer-security, vulnerability-scanning, sbom, red-hat
Last editorial update29d ago9h ago
WebsiteVisit →Visit →

What is Caddy?

Caddy 2.11's betas add ECH key rotation and a release process without its founder.

Caddy's tracked entries are the two 2.11 betas from December 2025 and January 2026. Beta 1 was the first release cut by the maintainer team's automated process without the original author, and brought time-based log rolling, argon2id basic auth and named socket activation. Beta 2 added ECH key rotation, multiple intermediates in PKI signing chains and a fix for the ZeroSSL issuer.

Read the full Caddy trajectory →

What is Clair?

Clair 4.10 RC can read SBOMs to match Java vulnerabilities.

Clair cut its first 4.10.0 release candidate on November 13, eleven months after 4.9.0. Its Java indexers can now read CycloneDX SBOM files and treat them as the source of truth, and Red Hat's VEX data now covers Maven advisories, so Java packages in Red Hat images can be matched. It also reduces memory use when many packages share a source package.

Read the full Clair trajectory →

Caddy vs Clair: editorial side-by-side

C
Caddy
INFRA · APIS
0.0

Caddy 2.11's betas add ECH key rotation and a release process without its founder.

◆ Current state

Caddy's tracked entries are the two 2.11 betas from December 2025 and January 2026. Beta 1 was the first release cut by the maintainer team's automated process without the original author, and brought time-based log rolling, argon2id basic auth and named socket activation. Beta 2 added ECH key rotation, multiple intermediates in PKI signing chains and a fix for the ZeroSSL issuer.

◆ Where it's heading

Caddy is investing in privacy-preserving TLS through Encrypted ClientHello, and in project continuity through a team-run release pipeline. The rest of the betas are edge-case fixes, consistent with a mature server polishing details.

◆ Prediction

The beta notes point to a 2.11 stable release; no newer entries are tracked, so its timing isn't visible here.

C
Clair
INFRA · APIS
2.5

Clair 4.10 RC can read SBOMs to match Java vulnerabilities.

◆ Current state

Clair cut its first 4.10.0 release candidate on November 13, eleven months after 4.9.0. Its Java indexers can now read CycloneDX SBOM files and treat them as the source of truth, and Red Hat's VEX data now covers Maven advisories, so Java packages in Red Hat images can be matched. It also reduces memory use when many packages share a source package.

◆ Where it's heading

Since 4.8 Clair has moved from Red Hat's older OVAL data to VEX, and each release follows Red Hat's security data more closely. 4.10 adds SBOMs as an input, so Clair can match what an image's own manifest declares, not only what it finds on disk.

◆ Prediction

More 4.10 release candidates and then a final are likely; the long gap between releases suggests that could take weeks.

Alternatives to Caddy and Clair

Other Infra & APIs products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either Caddy or Clair.

See all Caddy alternatives → · See all Clair alternatives →

Recent activity from Caddy and Clair

Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.

  1. 14h agoClairClair 4.10 RC reads CycloneDX SBOMs for Java matching
  2. 10mo agoCaddyCaddy 2.11 beta 2 adds ECH key rotation
  3. 11mo agoClairClair 4.9 moves CVSS data to NVD's 2.0 feeds
  4. 11mo agoCaddyCaddy 2.11 beta 1: first team-run release, argon2id, log rolling
  5. 2y agoClairClair 4.8 replaces Red Hat OVAL data with VEX
  6. 2y agoClairClair 4.7.4 changes the default layer download location
  7. 2y agoClairClair 4.7.3 requires TLS 1.2 or newer
  8. 3y agoClairClair 4.7.2 drops the retired CRDA source

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Caddy and Clair?

They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. Clair is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 2.5 vs 0.0), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.

Is Caddy better than Clair?

Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. Clair is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 2.5 vs 0.0), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Infra & APIs products to evaluate alongside.

What are the best alternatives to Caddy?

Top Caddy alternatives in Infra & APIs are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Caddy alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/caddy for the full list with editorial commentary on each.

What are the best alternatives to Clair?

Top Clair alternatives in Infra & APIs are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Clair alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/clair for the full list with editorial commentary on each.