Comparison

CFEngine vs Puppet Bolt

No clear leader: Puppet Bolt (53.9) and CFEngine (49.1) are within the 5-point margin; treat as a tie. The attribute-by-attribute breakdown below, with a source and date on every value, is the honest way to compare them.

Machine formatsMarkdownJSONGraphQLMarkdown is open. JSON and GraphQL need a free key.
CFEngine49
Puppet Bolt54
Score
vioscaleAI score
CFEngine49 / 100medium · 63%
Puppet Bolt54 / 100medium · 71%
Pricing
Free tier
CFEngine✓
Puppet Bolt–
Model
CFEnginefreemium
Puppet Boltcommercial
Price level
CFEnginelow
Puppet Bolt–
Transparent
CFEngine✗
Puppet Bolt–
Integrations
Count
CFEngine2
Puppet Bolt11
Security
Disclosure policy
CFEngine✓
Puppet Bolt–
Scorecard
CFEngine6.9
Puppet Bolt–
Adoption
Dependent repos
CFEngine0
Puppet Bolt–
Github stars
CFEngine538
Puppet Bolt–
Activity
Commits last 30d
CFEngine63
Puppet Bolt–
Language
Primary
CFEngineC
Puppet Bolt–
Market
Availability
Content
Faq
CFEngine4 items
Puppet Bolt3 items

Capabilities

Feature-by-feature on the axes that matter for configuration management tools. “-” means undocumented, not absent.

Core
Architecture
CFEngineAgent-based
Puppet Bolt-
Push / pull model
CFEngineBoth
Puppet Bolt-
Config language
CFEngineCFEngine policy language
Puppet Bolt-
Deployment
Masterless mode
CFEngine-
Puppet Bolt-
Hosting
CFEngineCloud + self-hosted
Puppet BoltCloud + self-hosted
Correctness
Idempotent
CFEngine✓
Puppet Bolt-
Model
Desired-state declarative
CFEngine✓
Puppet Bolt✓
Ecosystem
Content registry
CFEngine✓
Puppet Bolt-
Platform
Windows support
CFEngine✓
Puppet Bolt✓
Scope
Cloud provisioning
CFEngine-
Puppet Bolt✓
Governance
Policy / compliance
CFEngine✓
Puppet Bolt✓
Commercial
Enterprise edition
CFEngine✓
Puppet Bolt✓
Licensing
Open-source core
CFEngine✓
Puppet Bolt✓

What each one is

The product in its own terms, so the numbers below have context.

CFEngine

A configuration management platform that automates IT infrastructure operations, enforces security policies, and enables compliance across systems.

Independently observed

Puppet Bolt

A framework for managing infrastructure resources by specifying desired states through modules and code, supporting multiple operating systems.

Independently observed

Pricing

List pricing as published by each vendor, with the date we read it. Always verify at the source before you buy.

CFEngine

HybridFree tier

Free open-source community edition or commercial enterprise edition

  • Community EditionFree
    • GitHub source access
    • Community support
  • Enterprise EditionContact sales
    • Inventory & compliance reports
    • Web UI (Mission Portal)
    • APIs
    • Alerts & dashboards
    • Enhanced platform support
as of verify ↗

Puppet Bolt

Pricing not documented yet.

Platform & deployment

Where each product runs and how it can be hosted. A dash means undocumented, not unsupported.

Platforms
Windows
CFEngine✓
Puppet Bolt✓
Linux
CFEngine✓
Puppet Bolt✓
Deployment
Self-hosted
CFEngine✓
Puppet Bolt✓
On-premise
CFEngine✗
Puppet Bolt✓

Integrations

What each product connects to. Counts come from the vendor's own integration directory where one exists.

CFEngine

2 total
  • Git
  • Docker
Independently observed

Puppet Bolt

11 total
  • ServiceNow
  • VMware
  • Argo CD
  • Jenkins
  • Dynatrace
  • Datadog
  • New Relic
  • CIS Benchmarks
  • Tenable Nessus
  • DISA STIG
  • Splunk
Independently observed
Still deciding?

CFEngine or Puppet Bolt: which one depends on you

A composite score cannot know your constraints. Describe them and both get re-weighted against what you actually need, with the evidence behind every position.

Free to run, no account needed to start. How the evaluation works

Comparison generated from independently-sourced facts. Every value links to its source and retrieval date. See the method.