Comparison

FreeRTOS vs Zephyr RTOS

On the evidence we track, Zephyr RTOS leads this comparison with a composite score of 53/100. 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
FreeRTOS47
Zephyr RTOS53
Score
Vioscale score
FreeRTOS47 / 100low · 29%
Zephyr RTOS53 / 100low · 40%
Pricing
Free tier
FreeRTOS
Zephyr RTOS
Model
FreeRTOScommercial
Zephyr RTOScommercial
Price level
FreeRTOSfree
Zephyr RTOSfree
Transparent
FreeRTOS
Zephyr RTOS
Integrations
Count
FreeRTOS8
Zephyr RTOS1
Adoption
Dependent repos
FreeRTOS
Zephyr RTOS0
Github stars
FreeRTOS7,722
Zephyr RTOS16,315
Activity
Commits last 30d
FreeRTOS2
Zephyr RTOS100
Release
Cadence days
FreeRTOS83
Zephyr RTOS6
History
FreeRTOS14 items
Zephyr RTOS20 items
License
Spdx
FreeRTOSMIT
Zephyr RTOSApache-2.0
Language
Primary
FreeRTOSC
Zephyr RTOSC
Market
Availability
FreeRTOS

Capabilities

Feature-by-feature on the axes that matter for embedded iot dev. “-” means undocumented, not absent.

Capabilities
Target class
FreeRTOSMicrocontroller/RTOS
Zephyr RTOSBoth
Rtos type
FreeRTOSPreemptive
Zephyr RTOS-
Low power support
FreeRTOS-
Zephyr RTOS-
Tls dtls stack
FreeRTOS
Zephyr RTOS-
Ota updates
FreeRTOS
Zephyr RTOS-
Device management console
FreeRTOS
Zephyr RTOS-
Device provisioning
FreeRTOS
Zephyr RTOS-
Open source
FreeRTOS
Zephyr RTOS
PSA certified
FreeRTOS
Zephyr RTOS-
Rust support
FreeRTOS-
Zephyr RTOS-

What each one is

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

FreeRTOS

An open-source real-time operating system designed for resource-constrained microcontrollers and small processors. Offers kernel with multiprocessing, integrated TCP/IP networking with IPv6, and security-validated connectivity libraries for cloud integration.

Independently observed

Zephyr RTOS

Leader

Zephyr is a real-time operating system optimized for resource-constrained embedded devices, ranging from simple sensors to sophisticated IoT devices and gateways. It provides a small-footprint kernel supporting multiple processor architectures and is built with security and long-product-lifecycle support as core design principles.

Independently observed

Pricing

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

FreeRTOS

Open sourceFree tier

Free (MIT license); commercial support available via OpenRTOS

  • FreeRTOSFree
  • OpenRTOSContact sales
as of verify ↗

Zephyr RTOS

Leader
Open sourceFree tier
as of verify ↗

Platform & deployment

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

Deployment
Self-hosted
FreeRTOS
Zephyr RTOS

Integrations

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

FreeRTOS

8 total
  • AWS IoT Device Shadow
  • AWS IoT Jobs
  • AWS IoT Device Defender
  • AWS IoT Fleet Provisioning
  • AWS IoT OTA
  • MbedTLS
  • WolfSSL
  • Percepio Tracealyzer
Independently observed

Zephyr RTOS

Leader
1 total
  • PlatformIO
Independently observed

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