# Ansible vs Salt

**Leader by vioscaleAI score:** Ansible

| Attribute | Ansible | Salt |
|---|---|---|
| **vioscaleAI score** | 64.1 (65% (medium)) | 53.3 (76% (high)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | 35 | 100 |
| adoption.dependent_repos | 2,140 | 0 |
| adoption.github_stars | 70,980 | 15,714 |
| adoption.package_downloads_weekly | 1,964,190 | 29,742 |
| content.faq | `[{"answer":"Ansible is an open source IT automation engine that automates provisioning, configuration management, application deployment, orchestration, and many other IT processes. It is free to use, and the project benefits from the experience and intelligence of its thousands of contributors. It is indexed under Configuration Management Tools.","source":"https://www.ansible.com","question":"What is Ansible?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Ansible is open source, so it can be self-hosted and used at no licence cost. It is released under the GPL-3.0 licence. Paid editions are also offered: Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform, priced on request. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://www.ansible.com","question":"Is Ansible free to use?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Ansible supports a command-line interface. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://www.ansible.com","question":"What platforms does Ansible support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. Ansible can be deployed cloud / SaaS and self-hosted, so it does not have to run on the vendor's infrastructure.","source":"https://www.ansible.com","question":"Can Ansible be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have confirmed 22 integrations for Ansible, including Terraform, VMware, ServiceNow, AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform, Cisco and Juniper, plus 14 more. This is what we could verify from public sources, so the vendor may support others we have not indexed.","source":"https://www.ansible.com","question":"What does Ansible integrate with?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. Ansible is published under the GPL-3.0 licence, a copyleft licence, so check its terms before embedding it in a closed-source product. Licence terms can change between releases, so verify against the repository for the version you intend to use.","source":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible","question":"Is Ansible open source?","confidence":0.95}]` | `[{"answer":"An open-source framework that allows teams to automate and manage thousands of systems from a central control plane. It provides remote command execution, configuration management, and infrastructure orchestration capabilities through a master-minion agent architecture. It is indexed under Configuration Management Tools.","source":"https://saltproject.io","question":"What is Salt?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Salt is open source, so it can be self-hosted and used at no licence cost. It is released under the Apache-2.0 licence. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://saltproject.io","question":"Is Salt free to use?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Salt supports Windows, macOS, Linux and a command-line interface. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://saltproject.io","question":"What platforms does Salt support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. Salt can be deployed cloud / SaaS and self-hosted, so it does not have to run on the vendor's infrastructure.","source":"https://saltproject.io","question":"Can Salt be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. Salt is published under the Apache-2.0 licence, a permissive licence that generally allows commercial use and modification. Licence terms can change between releases, so verify against the repository for the version you intend to use.","source":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt","question":"Is Salt open source?","confidence":0.95}]` |
| deployment.options | `{"self_hosted":true}` | `{"cloud":true,"self_hosted":true}` |
| description.long | A system for automating infrastructure provisioning, configuration management, and application deployment across multiple machines via standard SSH without requiring agent installation on remote systems. | A Python-based automation tool and framework designed to deploy, configure, and manage complex IT infrastructure systems, supporting multiple operating systems and maintaining consistent desired state across infrastructure components. |
| features.capabilities | `{"hosting":"self","architecture":"agentless","desired_state":true,"masterless_mode":true,"open_source_core":true,"cloud_provisioning":true}` | `{"model":"pull","hosting":"self","architecture":"agent","desired_state":true,"windows_support":true,"open_source_core":true,"cloud_provisioning":true,"enterprise_edition":false}` |
| integrations.count | 22 | 1 |
| integrations.list | `[{"name":"Terraform"},{"name":"VMware"},{"name":"ServiceNow"},{"name":"AWS"},{"name":"Microsoft Azure"},{"name":"Google Cloud Platform"},{"name":"Cisco"},{"name":"Juniper"},{"name":"F5"},{"name":"HPE"},{"name":"Dell Technologies"},{"name":"NetApp"},{"name":"SAP"},{"name":"Pure"},{"name":"Palo Alto Networks"},{"name":"CyberArk"},{"name":"HashiCorp Vault"},{"name":"Splunk"},{"name":"Dynatrace"},{"name":"Infoblox"},{"name":"Aruba"},{"name":"Windows"}]` | `[{"name":"Bitnami"}]` |
| language.primary | Python | Python |
| license.spdx | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| platform.support | `{"cli":true}` | `{"cli":true,"mac":true,"linux":true,"windows":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"hybrid","plans":[{"free":true,"name":"Ansible (Open Source)","description":"Free open-source project"},{"free":false,"name":"Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform","description":"Enterprise platform with security hardening and support","contactSales":true}],"summary":"Free open-source version or paid enterprise platform","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://www.ansible.com","retrievedAt":"2026-08-05T14:05:30.789Z"}` | `{"type":"open_source","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://saltproject.io","retrievedAt":"2026-10-13T15:11:26.897Z"}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | commercial | open_source |
| pricing.price_level | low | free |
| pricing.transparent | - | yes |
| release.cadence_days | - | 6 |
| release.history | `[{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.21.5","date":"2026-10-05T15:11:41Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.21.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.20.10","date":"2026-10-05T15:10:10Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.20.10"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.19.14","date":"2026-10-05T15:08:52Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.19.14"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.22.0b2","date":"2026-09-29T15:54:01Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v2.22.0b2"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.21.5rc1","date":"2026-09-29T15:47:26Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v2.21.5rc1"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.20.10rc1","date":"2026-09-29T15:47:35Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v2.20.10rc1"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.19.14rc1","date":"2026-09-29T15:41:38Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v2.19.14rc1"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.22.0b1","date":"2026-09-18T16:37:36Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v2.22.0b1"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.21.4","date":"2026-09-08T16:52:09Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.21.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.20.9","date":"2026-09-08T16:50:09Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.20.9"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.19.13","date":"2026-09-08T16:48:31Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.19.13"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.21.4rc1","date":"2026-08-31T16:28:46Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v2.21.4rc1"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.20.9rc1","date":"2026-08-31T16:27:27Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v2.20.9rc1"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.19.13rc1","date":"2026-08-31T16:26:07Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v2.19.13rc1"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.21.3","date":"2026-08-10T16:46:28Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.21.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.20.8","date":"2026-08-10T16:45:07Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.20.8"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.19.12","date":"2026-08-10T16:43:51Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.19.12"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.18.19","date":"2026-08-10T16:42:12Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.18.19"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.21.3rc1","date":"2026-08-03T22:47:24Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v2.21.3rc1"},{"url":"https://github.com/ansible/ansible/releases/tag/v2.20.8rc1","date":"2026-08-03T22:46:13Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v2.20.8rc1"}]` | `[{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3008.3","date":"2026-09-30T21:19:42Z","type":"stable","version":"v3008.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3007.15","date":"2026-09-30T21:12:34Z","type":"stable","version":"v3007.15"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3006.28","date":"2026-09-30T20:55:21Z","type":"stable","version":"v3006.28"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3008.1-2","date":"2026-07-26T01:32:20Z","type":"stable","version":"v3008.1-2"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3008.1-1","date":"2026-07-23T19:43:15Z","type":"stable","version":"v3008.1-1"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3008.2","date":"2026-07-01T19:37:49Z","type":"stable","version":"v3008.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3006.27","date":"2026-07-01T18:54:23Z","type":"stable","version":"v3006.27"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3006.26","date":"2026-06-24T17:16:34Z","type":"stable","version":"v3006.26"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3008.1","date":"2026-06-11T14:41:31Z","type":"stable","version":"v3008.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3008.0","date":"2026-05-27T10:36:40Z","type":"stable","version":"v3008.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3008.0rc4","date":"2026-05-15T17:27:10Z","type":"stable","version":"v3008.0rc4"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3008.0rc3","date":"2026-05-13T16:48:46Z","type":"stable","version":"v3008.0rc3"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3006.25","date":"2026-05-13T16:42:11Z","type":"stable","version":"v3006.25"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3008.0rc2","date":"2026-05-06T18:22:06Z","type":"stable","version":"v3008.0rc2"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3007.14","date":"2026-04-29T18:00:27Z","type":"stable","version":"v3007.14"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3008.0rc1","date":"2026-04-23T23:59:27Z","type":"stable","version":"v3008.0rc1"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3006.24","date":"2026-04-23T22:26:43Z","type":"stable","version":"v3006.24"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3006.23","date":"2026-02-23T21:17:26Z","type":"stable","version":"v3006.23"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3006.22","date":"2026-02-22T02:37:56Z","type":"stable","version":"v3006.22"},{"url":"https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releases/tag/v3007.13","date":"2026-02-12T23:09:14Z","type":"stable","version":"v3007.13"}]` |
| reliability.status_page | - | yes |
| security.scorecard | 7.5 | 4.8 |
| security.vulnerabilities | `{"count":7,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=pypi&package_name=ansible-core&per_page=100","last_12m":1,"max_severity":"HIGH"}` | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=alpine&package_name=salt-syndic&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` |

## Capabilities (Configuration Management Tools)

| Capability | Ansible | Salt |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Core** |  |  |
| Architecture | Agentless / SSH-push | Agent-based |
| Push / pull model | - | Pull |
| Config language | - | - |
| **Deployment** |  |  |
| Masterless mode | ✓ | - |
| Hosting | Self-hosted only | Self-hosted only |
| **Correctness** |  |  |
| Idempotent | - | - |
| **Model** |  |  |
| Desired-state declarative | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Ecosystem** |  |  |
| Content registry | - | - |
| **Platform** |  |  |
| Windows support | - | ✓ |
| **Scope** |  |  |
| Cloud provisioning | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Governance** |  |  |
| Policy / compliance | - | - |
| **Commercial** |  |  |
| Enterprise edition | - | ✗ |
| **Licensing** |  |  |
| Open-source core | ✓ | ✓ |

*Source: vioscaleAI. Generated 2026-10-16T19:04:46.528Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*