Drone vs Semaphore
On the evidence we track, Semaphore leads this comparison with a composite score of 63/100. Scores are only directly comparable because these tools share a category; the full breakdown and every source is below.
Capabilities
Feature-by-feature on the axes that matter for ci/cd tools. “-” means undocumented, not absent.
What each one is
The product in its own terms, so the numbers below have context.
Drone
A CI/CD server featuring a web interface, programmatic API, auto-scaling instance management, and extensibility through Docker builds and custom runners.
Semaphore
LeaderA delivery platform that combines CI/CD capabilities with AI-driven features through a command-line interface.
Pricing
List pricing as published by each vendor, with the date we read it. Always verify at the source before you buy.
Semaphore
LeaderPay-per-minute metered compute: $0.0025/min (self-hosted) to $0.09/min (MacOS). Includes 20 concurrent jobs, $15/month free credits, 9.6 GB cache, and free support. Optional modular support and success services.
- Compute - Ubuntu ARM$0.003–$0.012/min depending on vCPU
- Compute - Ubuntu x64$0.0075–$0.015/min depending on vCPU
- Compute - MacOS$0.09/min
- Compute - Self-Hosted$0.0025/min
Platform & deployment
Where each product runs and how it can be hosted. A dash means undocumented, not unsupported.
Integrations
What each product connects to. Counts come from the vendor's own integration directory where one exists.
Drone
- GitHub
- GitHub Enterprise
- Bitbucket
- GitLab
- Docker
- MySQL
- Source code management systems
Semaphore
Leader- Flowdock
Drone or Semaphore: 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.