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Woodpecker CI alternatives: 5 apps ranked by verified data

Facts checked Oct 25, 2026AppBreakup editorialHow we rank

Common reasons people leave Woodpecker CI: modest feature set, and community-run with no commercial support. We ranked 5 alternatives by how directly each one replaces Woodpecker CI, then by reviews, real visits and how recently each app's facts were checked against its own website. Jenkins currently ranks first.

Quick comparison

#AppPricingOpen sourcePlatformsVerified factsScore
1Jenkins logoJenkinsOpen sourceYesSelf-hosted, Linux, Windows +13 of 366.5
2Gitea logoGiteaOpen sourceYesSelf-hosted, Web, Linux +24 of 462.6
3Forgejo logoForgejoOpen sourceYesSelf-hosted, Web, Linux4 of 459.6
4Concourse logoConcourseOpen sourceYesSelf-hosted, Linux3 of 357.2
5GitHub Actions logoGitHub ActionsFree plan + paidNoWeb, Self-hosted4 of 455.3
  1. Jenkins logo

    1. JenkinsTop pick

    Best for: Teams that need fully self-hosted, highly customisable CI and can maintain it

    Open sourceSelf-hostableSelf-hosted, Linux, Windows, macOS

    66.5

    score / 100

    Why switch from Woodpecker CI

    Far more plugins and flexibility, at the cost of maintenance.

    Pros

    • Free and runs anywhere, including air-gapped networks
    • Huge plugin ecosystem
    • Pipelines as code in a Jenkinsfile

    Cons

    • Maintenance and plugin upgrades are a constant chore
    • Dated user interface
    • Groovy pipelines can become hard to manage
    Visit Jenkins Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.3100
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Jenkins a good Woodpecker CI alternative?

    Verified facts

    3 of 3 verified
    License
    MIT
    Checked Oct 25, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Plugins
    Hundreds
    Checked Oct 25, 2026jenkins.io(opens source in a new tab)
    Platforms
    Windows, Linux, macOS
    Checked Oct 25, 2026jenkins.io(opens source in a new tab)
  2. Gitea logo

    2. Gitea

    Best for: Teams and individuals who want a GitHub-like forge on their own modest hardware

    Open sourceSelf-hostableSelf-hosted, Web, Linux, macOS, Windows

    62.6

    score / 100

    Why switch from Woodpecker CI

    Gitea Actions gives built-in CI with GitHub-style workflows.

    Pros

    • Single binary that runs on very little hardware
    • Actions CI compatible with many GitHub workflows
    • Free with unlimited users

    Cons

    • Smaller ecosystem than GitHub or GitLab
    • Company-led governance split the community
    • Some enterprise features are paid
    Visit Gitea Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.387
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Gitea a good Woodpecker CI alternative?

    Verified facts

    4 of 4 verified
    License
    MIT
    Checked Oct 25, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Open-source edition
    Free, unlimited users and repos
    Checked Oct 25, 2026about.gitea.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Managed hosting
    Gitea Cloud
    Checked Oct 25, 2026about.gitea.com(opens source in a new tab)
    CI/CD
    Gitea Actions
    Checked Oct 25, 2026about.gitea.com(opens source in a new tab)
  3. Forgejo logo

    3. Forgejo

    Best for: Self-hosters who want a light forge run by a non-profit community rather than a company

    Open sourceSelf-hostableSelf-hosted, Web, Linux

    59.6

    score / 100

    Why switch from Woodpecker CI

    Forgejo Actions provides CI built into the forge.

    Pros

    • Community governance under a non-profit
    • Light to run with built-in Actions CI
    • Copyleft licence guards against proprietary forks

    Cons

    • Smaller ecosystem than GitHub or GitLab
    • No official paid support from the project
    • Federation features are still in progress
    Visit Forgejo Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.377
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Forgejo a good Woodpecker CI alternative?

    Verified facts

    4 of 4 verified
    License
    GPL v3+ (from v9.0)
    Checked Oct 25, 2026forgejo.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Stewardship
    Non-profit Codeberg e.V.
    Checked Oct 25, 2026forgejo.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Self-hosting
    Yes
    Checked Oct 25, 2026forgejo.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Free software
    Always
    Checked Oct 25, 2026forgejo.org(opens source in a new tab)
  4. Concourse logo

    4. Concourse

    Best for: Teams that want reproducible, explicitly declared pipelines on self-hosted workers

    Open sourceSelf-hostableSelf-hosted, Linux

    57.2

    score / 100

    Why switch from Woodpecker CI

    Container-based, self-hosted CI with a resource-driven model.

    Pros

    • Fresh container for every task
    • Visual pipeline graph
    • Run tasks locally with the fly CLI

    Cons

    • Unusual model has a learning curve
    • Smaller, quieter community
    • No hosted option
    Visit Concourse Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.369
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Concourse a good Woodpecker CI alternative?

    Verified facts

    3 of 3 verified
    License
    Apache-2.0
    Checked Oct 25, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Model
    Resources, tasks and jobs
    Checked Oct 25, 2026concourse-ci.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Open source
    Yes
    Checked Oct 25, 2026concourse-ci.org(opens source in a new tab)
  5. GitHub Actions logo

    5. GitHub Actions

    Best for: Teams hosting code on GitHub who want CI/CD right next to their repositories

    Free plan + paidWeb, Self-hosted

    55.3

    score / 100

    Why switch from Woodpecker CI

    Hosted CI with a huge action marketplace.

    Pros

    • No separate tool to set up for GitHub repos
    • Large marketplace of reusable actions
    • Free for public repositories

    Cons

    • Hosted runners are slower than specialist providers
    • YAML workflows get hard to debug at scale
    • Only works with GitHub-hosted code
    Visit GitHub Actions Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.363
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is GitHub Actions a good Woodpecker CI alternative?

    Verified facts

    4 of 4 verified
    Free usage
    Public repos and self-hosted runners
    Checked Oct 25, 2026docs.github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Free plan minutes
    2,000/month
    Checked Oct 25, 2026docs.github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Team plan minutes
    3,000/month
    Checked Oct 25, 2026docs.github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Linux minute price
    $0.006 per minute
    Checked Oct 25, 2026docs.github.com(opens source in a new tab)

The best Woodpecker CI alternative for…

The highest-ranked app in this list for each need.

Jenkins logo

Best Woodpecker CI alternative for most people

Jenkins

Far more plugins and flexibility, at the cost of maintenance.

Gitea logo

Best Woodpecker CI alternative for a free option

Gitea

Gitea Actions gives built-in CI with GitHub-style workflows.

GitHub Actions logo

Best Woodpecker CI alternative for a free plan you can upgrade

GitHub Actions

Hosted CI with a huge action marketplace.

Forgejo logo

Best Woodpecker CI alternative for open source

Forgejo

Forgejo Actions provides CI built into the forge.

Concourse logo

Best Woodpecker CI alternative for self-hosting

Concourse

Container-based, self-hosted CI with a resource-driven model.

Jenkins logo

Best Woodpecker CI alternative for Mac

Jenkins

Far more plugins and flexibility, at the cost of maintenance.

Jenkins logo

Best Woodpecker CI alternative for Windows

Jenkins

Far more plugins and flexibility, at the cost of maintenance.

Jenkins logo

Best Woodpecker CI alternative for Linux

Jenkins

Far more plugins and flexibility, at the cost of maintenance.

Gitea logo

Best Woodpecker CI alternative for working in the browser

Gitea

Gitea Actions gives built-in CI with GitHub-style workflows.

Woodpecker CI alternatives: common questions

What is the best alternative to Woodpecker CI?

Jenkins ranks first right now. Far more plugins and flexibility, at the cost of maintenance. Gitea and Forgejo follow it in our ranking.

Is there a free alternative to Woodpecker CI?

Yes. Jenkins (open source), Gitea (open source), Forgejo (open source) and Concourse (open source) have a free option. Check each app's verified facts for current plan limits.

Is there an open-source alternative to Woodpecker CI?

Yes: Jenkins, Gitea, Forgejo and Concourse. Jenkins, Gitea and Forgejo can also be self-hosted.

Which Woodpecker CI alternatives work on Linux?

Jenkins, Gitea, Forgejo and Concourse run on Linux.

Why do people switch from Woodpecker CI?

The complaints we hear most: modest feature set; community-run with no commercial support; fewer plugins than larger CI systems.

How is this list ranked?

Every app is scored with the same published formula: how directly it replaces Woodpecker CI, reviews (weighted by verification), visits from AppBreakup, how recently its facts were checked against its own website, and reader votes.