Honua vs. GeoServer & QGIS Server
These servers fit different operating models. This page compares their documented protocol surfaces, licensing, and deployment posture, then presents one historical Honua-versus-GeoServer benchmark separately. Product facts were reviewed against the linked documentation on July 11, 2026.
How to read this page. Cells marked snapshot come from the April 28, 2026 GeoBench table and inherit its reproducibility limits. Cells marked documented summarize linked product or licensing documentation; they are not benchmark results. No competitor price or TCO claim is made.
The three servers
| Server | Runtime | License model | In the benchmark harness? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Honua Server | .NET 10 | Elastic License 2.0 (ELv2) ↗ source-available server; Apache-2.0 SDKs; self-hostable | Yes — primary subject of the geobench snapshot |
| GeoServer | Java / JVM | GPL-2.0-or-later, open source ↗ | Measured — version 2.28.0 with the GSR community extension in this snapshot |
| QGIS Server | C++ / Qt | GPL-2.0-or-later, open source ↗ | Harness support only — version 3.38 is runnable, but no QGIS result appears in the published headline table |
Runtime and license rows are documented product facts. Harness participation is snapshot evidence; see methodology and limits.
Documented protocol coverage
This table summarizes documented core or extension-based protocol paths. “Not documented” means the reviewed core-service documentation did not identify that surface; it is not proof that no plugin or custom integration exists.
| Protocol | Honua | GeoServer | QGIS Server |
|---|---|---|---|
| Esri GeoServices REST (FeatureServer / MapServer / ImageServer) | Native · partial by operation | GSR community extension | Not documented in reviewed core services |
| OGC API Features | Yes | Community module | Yes |
| WMS / WFS / WMTS | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| WCS (coverages) | Experimental | Yes | Yes |
| STAC | Yes | Community extension | Not documented in reviewed core services |
| OData feature surface | Yes | Not documented in reviewed core services | Not documented in reviewed core services |
These are documented surfaces, not a shared conformance result. Sources: Honua protocols; GeoServer services ↗ and STAC extension ↗; QGIS Server services ↗. Coverage and extension maturity vary within every product.
Performance — Honua vs. GeoServer (sourced)
This is the only published profile here with measurements for two servers. The table reproduces the April 28, 2026 GeoBench snapshot: a 100K-point dataset, five-run median, and 4 vCPU / 4 GB per server container, with disclosed but different pool settings. It is historical evidence, not a current release result. The exact Honua image and full run directory are not publicly pinned; read the complete methodology and limits.
| Scenario | Honua | GeoServer | Honua advantage |
|---|---|---|---|
GeoServices MapServer/identify, large bbox | 2868.9 req/s, p95 6.3 ms | 6.1 req/s, p95 2833.6 ms | 470x req/s · 450x lower p95 |
WMS filtered GetMap, range | 171.4 req/s, p95 105.5 ms | 1.7 req/s, p95 11953.6 ms | 101x req/s · 113x lower p95 |
| Attribute filter, LIKE | 1632.8 req/s, p95 5.2 ms | 22.3 req/s, p95 959.3 ms | 73x req/s · 185x lower p95 |
| Spatial bbox, large bbox | 1069.3 req/s, p95 15.5 ms | 19.5 req/s, p95 977.1 ms | 55x req/s · 63x lower p95 |
| Concurrent mixed workload, 100 VUs | 1190.2 req/s, p99 201.4 ms | 96.2 req/s, p99 1793.2 ms | 12x req/s · 8.9x lower p99 |
WMS GetMap, medium bbox | 80.1 req/s, p95 186.4 ms | 30.5 req/s, p95 582.5 ms | 2.6x req/s · 3.1x lower p95 |
Within that test profile, every listed comparable performance cell favored Honua. The result does not establish performance for other versions, datasets, configurations, or production workloads. Response-shape audits and a conflicting wms-getfeatureinfo rerun status further limit the snapshot.
No QGIS performance comparison. QGIS Server is runnable in the harness, but the published snapshot contains no QGIS result row.
Esri-client compatibility
The useful migration question is not “does the product name work?” but “are the exact operations and parameters used by this workflow supported?” Honua's public parity documentation keeps that answer scoped:
| GeoServices surface | Honua boundary | Public evidence |
|---|---|---|
| FeatureServer / MapServer / ImageServer | Partial | Operation and parameter matrix ↗ |
| GeocodeServer / NAServer / GPServer | Partial | Operation and parameter matrix ↗ |
| Geometry Service | Documented operations implemented | Parameter caveats ↗ |
See the Compatibility Matrix for the evaluation method and the public client limitations ↗. A migration decision should use your operation inventory and test results, not a product-level compatibility percentage.
Commercial & operating model
| Dimension | Honua | GeoServer | QGIS Server |
|---|---|---|---|
| Source license | ELv2 server; Apache-2.0 SDKs | GPL-2.0-or-later | GPL-2.0-or-later |
| Esri clients | Native GeoServices surface; partial by operation | Community-extension path | No GeoServices surface identified in reviewed core-service docs |
| Deployment ecosystem | Public Helm chart; GitOps loop private beta | Project and community deployment options | Container and community deployment options |
| Documented telemetry path | OpenTelemetry | Monitoring depends on deployment and extensions | Logging and metrics depend on deployment and plugins |
| Commercial support | Honua | Multiple third-party providers | Multiple third-party providers |
This table summarizes documented operating-model differences; it is not a quality ranking. The Honua column links to pricing, licensing, operations, and deployment evidence. Competitor implementations vary by version, extension set, and service provider.
Where each option fits
- GeoServer is a mature GPL open-source server with broad OGC services and an extension ecosystem. Evaluate Honua when a native GeoServices REST path, OpenTelemetry, and one server across Esri and standards-based clients matter.
- QGIS Server is a natural fit when QGIS projects, rendering, and the shared desktop/server cartographic model are central. Evaluate Honua when the documented GeoServices, STAC, or OData surfaces are requirements.
- Honua is newer and source-available rather than open source at the server layer. Its GeoServices coverage is partial and several operating paths remain Preview or private beta. Test those boundaries against your estate before choosing it.
Verify it yourself
Re-run the public performance harness, inspect the public compatibility documentation, and test your own operation inventory against the exact Honua revision or pilot build under evaluation:
# Performance head-to-head (Honua vs. GeoServer vs. QGIS Server)
git clone https://github.com/honua-io/geobench
cd geobench && python3 data/small/generate.py && ./scripts/run-benchmark.shFor protocol discovery, the live STAC root ↗ is available; the demo host root is not presented as a landing page.