Comparison

Checkstyle vs Pylint

On the evidence we track, Pylint leads this comparison with a composite score of 72/100. Scores are only directly comparable because these tools share a category; the full breakdown and every source is below.

Machine formatsJSONMarkdownGraphQLor send Accept: application/json
Checkstyle61
Pylint72
Score
Vioscale score
Checkstyle61 / 100medium · 54%
Pylint72 / 100medium · 54%
Pricing
Free tier
Checkstyle
Pylint
Model
Checkstylecommercial
Price level
Checkstylefree
Pylintfree
Transparent
Checkstyle
Pylint
Integrations
Count
Checkstyle2
Pylint10
Reliability
Status page
Checkstyle
Pylint
Adoption
Dependent repos
Checkstyle1,425
Pylint117,361
Github stars
Checkstyle9,001
Pylint5,715
Activity
Commits last 30d
Checkstyle100
Pylint96
Release
Cadence days
Checkstyle14
Pylint24
History
Checkstyle20 items
Pylint20 items
License
Spdx
CheckstyleLGPL-2.1
PylintGPL-2.0
Language
Primary
CheckstyleJava
PylintPython

Capabilities

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

Core
Function
CheckstyleStatic analyzer
PylintLinter
Language scope
CheckstyleSingle-language
PylintSingle-language
Implementation language
CheckstyleJava
PylintPython
Capability
Autofix
Checkstyle
Pylint
Config
Config model
CheckstyleConfig file
PylintConfig file
Extensibility
Custom rules
Checkstyle
Pylint
Deployment
Deployment
CheckstyleCLI-local
PylintCLI-local
Delivery
Editor integration
Checkstyle-
Pylint
CI / VCS gating
Checkstyle
Pylint
Insight
Code metrics
Checkstyle
Pylint
Performance
Incremental / monorepo aware
Checkstyle-
Pylint-
Licensing
Open-source
CheckstyleOSS
PylintOSS
Commercial
Pricing model
CheckstyleFree
PylintFree

What each one is

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

Checkstyle

A development tool that automatically scans Java code to verify adherence to coding standards, detecting style violations, design problems, and formatting issues. Supports customizable rule sets and integrates with build tools and IDEs.

Independently observed

Pylint

Leader

Pylint automatically scans Python source code to identify problems with coding standards compliance, detect runtime errors, and suggest refactoring improvements. It supports extensive customization through configuration files and plugins.

Independently observed

Pricing

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

Checkstyle

Free
as of verify ↗

Pylint

Leader
FreeFree tier

Free and open source. Commercial support services available.

as of verify ↗

Platform & deployment

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

Platforms
macOS
Checkstyle
Pylint
Windows
Checkstyle
Pylint
Linux
Checkstyle
Pylint
CLI
Checkstyle
Pylint
Deployment
Self-hosted
Checkstyle
Pylint

Integrations

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

Checkstyle

2 total
  • Maven
  • Ant
Independently observed

Pylint

Leader
10 total
  • Vim
  • Emacs
  • Eclipse
  • TextMate
  • PyDev
  • Spyder
  • Editra
  • Jenkins
  • Hudson
  • Apycot
Independently observed

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