FlareSolverr vs Gotenberg
Which should you use? A side-by-side look at what each one does, who it suits, what it costs, how hard it is to set up, and where each falls short.
Open source · MIT
A local proxy server that opens a real browser to get past Cloudflare checks for your requests.
Open source · MIT
A Docker-based API that converts documents such as HTML, URLs, and Office files to PDF.
The short answer
Choose FlareSolverr if you need…
- Developers whose scripts are blocked by Cloudflare challenges on pages they are allowed to access
- People running self-hosted tools that need to fetch Cloudflare-protected pages through a local REST endpoint
- Users who prefer running the service in Docker
Choose Gotenberg if you need…
- Developers who need to turn HTML or web pages into PDFs from their own application
- Teams that generate Office documents and want them delivered as PDFs through an API
- Backend services that want PDF conversion without installing Chromium or LibreOffice on the host
- People who want to run document conversion inside their own infrastructure
Side-by-side
| FlareSolverr | Gotenberg | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | App | App |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 16.1k | 13.5k |
| Setup difficulty | Intermediate | Intermediate |
| How you get it | Run with Docker | Run with Docker |
| Main language | Python | Go |
| Last code update | 13 days ago | 5 days ago |
What each one is
FlareSolverr
FlareSolverr is a proxy server that runs on your own machine and handles requests for pages protected by Cloudflare or DDoS-GUARD. When a request arrives, it launches a Chrome browser, loads the page, waits until the protection challenge is solved or times out, then returns the HTML and cookies. Other HTTP tools can then reuse those cookies.
Gotenberg
Gotenberg is a server you run in Docker that accepts files or web addresses over HTTP and returns PDFs. You send a request with multipart/form-data, and it handles the conversion using tools like headless Chromium and LibreOffice so you do not have to install them yourself. The README also lists PDF operations such as merging, splitting, watermarking, and PDF/A compliance.
Best for
FlareSolverr
- Developers whose scripts are blocked by Cloudflare challenges on pages they are allowed to access
- People running self-hosted tools that need to fetch Cloudflare-protected pages through a local REST endpoint
- Users who prefer running the service in Docker
Gotenberg
- Developers who need to turn HTML or web pages into PDFs from their own application
- Teams that generate Office documents and want them delivered as PDFs through an API
- Backend services that want PDF conversion without installing Chromium or LibreOffice on the host
- People who want to run document conversion inside their own infrastructure
Strengths
FlareSolverr
- Runs as a simple REST API that works from curl, Python, or PowerShell
- Reuses browser sessions so you do not have to solve challenges on every request
- Available as a Docker image, precompiled binary, or from source under the MIT license
Gotenberg
- Runs as a single Docker container, so setup on a server is straightforward
- Exposes conversion through a simple HTTP API that works from any language
- Hides the complexity of Chromium, LibreOffice, and fonts behind one interface
Not ideal for
FlareSolverr
- Anyone planning to expose it to the internet, since the README warns it can be abused
- Machines with little RAM, because each request launches a new browser and browsers use a lot of memory
- Users who need to run it on non-x64 hardware outside Docker, since precompiled binaries and source installs are x64 only
Gotenberg
- People who only need occasional conversions and prefer a ready-made web tool; this is a self-hosted API, so you must run and maintain it
- Users who want a desktop application with a graphical interface; the README describes an API served via Docker
- Projects that need a feature not listed in the README; the README is truncated, so check the full documentation before relying on specific capabilities
Trade-offs
FlareSolverr
- Browsers consume significant memory, so concurrent requests need enough RAM
- Works only for sites you are permitted to access; it is not a general guarantee against blocking
- Setup has platform-specific caveats such as Chromium not working on Windows for source installs
Gotenberg
- Requires Docker to run in the way the README describes, which adds a dependency for non-container setups
- The README is truncated, so details on configuration, security settings, and limits are not visible here
- Latest release is listed without binaries, so you will rely on Docker images or building from source
Getting started
FlareSolverr
Start the container with the Docker CLI
docker run -d --name=flaresolverr -p 127.0.0.1:8191:8191 -e LOG_LEVEL=info --restart unless-stopped ghcr.io/flaresolverr/flaresolverr:latestGotenberg
Start Gotenberg with Docker
docker run --rm -p 3000:3000 gotenberg/gotenberg:8Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between FlareSolverr and Gotenberg?
FlareSolverr: A local proxy server that opens a real browser to get past Cloudflare checks for your requests. Gotenberg: A Docker-based API that converts documents such as HTML, URLs, and Office files to PDF. FlareSolverr suits developers whose scripts are blocked by cloudflare challenges on pages they are allowed to access, while Gotenberg suits developers who need to turn html or web pages into pdfs from their own application.
Are FlareSolverr and Gotenberg free?
FlareSolverr: Free and open source. Gotenberg: Free and open source.
Is FlareSolverr or Gotenberg more popular?
FlareSolverr has more GitHub stars (16.1k) than Gotenberg (13.5k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to FlareSolverr and Gotenberg?
Other options people compare them with include PostgREST, One API, camofox-browser, ArchiveBox.
Keep comparing
Built from our catalogue entries for both products: open-source details come from each project's README (AI-assisted, refreshed weekly) and GitHub data; AI-tool details are editorial. Spotted something wrong? Let us know from either product's page.