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HSTS vs Nginx

Based on 3294 and 1143 real audits

View HSTS details | View Nginx details
MetricHSTSNginxWinner
Performance5252Tie
Accessibility9086HSTS
Best Practices8988HSTS
SEO9291HSTS
Security7369HSTS
TTFB403ms545msHSTS
Composite7875HSTS
Performance
HSTS
52
Nginx
52
Accessibility
HSTS
90
Nginx
86
Security
HSTS
73
Nginx
69
SEO
HSTS
92
Nginx
91
Composite
HSTS
78
Nginx
75

HSTS outperforms Nginx in 6 of 7 categories, with a stronger composite score (78 vs 75). Nginx leads in no categories.

When to choose HSTS

Choose HSTS when your primary concern is server response time and accessibility. Its audit data shows consistent strength in these areas across the sampled sites.

When to choose Nginx

Nginx doesn't clearly lead HSTS in any category on the sampled sites — pick it based on developer experience, ecosystem, or existing team skills rather than the audit scores.

How this comparison was built

Scores are medians across 3294 audited HSTS sites and 1143 audited Nginx sites in the BeaverCheck database. Every audit runs the same 100+ checks — Lighthouse performance, security headers, accessibility, SEO, server response time — against a real URL. No vendor input, no sponsorship, no affiliate links. Read the full methodology →

FAQ

Which is faster, HSTS or Nginx?
Based on real BeaverCheck audits, HSTS sites score higher on Lighthouse performance (52 vs 52 on average).
Which has better security, HSTS or Nginx?
HSTS sites score higher on security analysis (73 vs 69 on average).
Which has better accessibility, HSTS or Nginx?
Accessibility scores measured by Lighthouse WCAG 2.1 checks favor HSTS (90 vs 86). Both technologies can be made fully accessible with care — the difference reflects common patterns in the sampled sites, not inherent platform limits.
Which is better for SEO, HSTS or Nginx?
HSTS sites score higher on Lighthouse SEO signals (92 vs 91 on average), which cover meta tags, crawlability, mobile friendliness, and structured data. Content strategy and backlinks still matter more than platform choice for ranking.
Which has faster server response (TTFB), HSTS or Nginx?
HSTS sites show lower Time to First Byte (403 ms vs 545 ms on average). TTFB depends heavily on hosting and CDN setup rather than the technology itself, but the sampled sites suggest a meaningful difference in common deployment patterns.
Should I choose HSTS or Nginx for my website?
Both platforms have trade-offs. HSTS scores higher on overall composite score while HSTS may excel in metrics you care about most. Run a free BeaverCheck audit on a real site using each to compare the metrics relevant to your use case.
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