# git-cliff vs semantic-release

**Leader by vioscaleAI score:** semantic-release

| Attribute | git-cliff | semantic-release |
|---|---|---|
| **vioscaleAI score** | 50.7 (62% (medium)) | 59 (60% (medium)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | 28 | 4 |
| adoption.dependent_repos | 17 | 135,472 |
| adoption.github_stars | 12,299 | 24,103 |
| content.faq | `[{"answer":"An open-source changelog generation tool that parses conventional commits to produce formatted release notes with extensive customization options. It is indexed under Changelog Tools.","source":"https://git-cliff.org/","question":"What is git-cliff?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"git-cliff 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://git-cliff.org/","question":"Is git-cliff free to use?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"git-cliff supports a command-line interface. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://git-cliff.org/","question":"What platforms does git-cliff support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. git-cliff can be deployed self-hosted, so it does not have to run on the vendor's infrastructure.","source":"https://git-cliff.org/","question":"Can git-cliff be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. git-cliff 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/orhun/git-cliff","question":"Is git-cliff open source?","confidence":0.95}]` | `[{"answer":"An open-source tool that automatically determines version numbers, generates release notes, and publishes packages by analyzing commit messages according to semantic versioning. It integrates with CI/CD systems to eliminate manual release processes. It is indexed under Changelog Tools.","source":"https://semantic-release.gitbook.io/semantic-release/","question":"What is semantic-release?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"semantic-release is open source, so it can be self-hosted and used at no licence cost. It is released under the MIT licence. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://semantic-release.gitbook.io/semantic-release/","question":"Is semantic-release free to use?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"semantic-release supports a command-line interface. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://semantic-release.gitbook.io/semantic-release/","question":"What platforms does semantic-release support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. semantic-release can be deployed self-hosted, so it does not have to run on the vendor's infrastructure.","source":"https://semantic-release.gitbook.io/semantic-release/","question":"Can semantic-release be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have confirmed 4 integrations for semantic-release, including npm, GitHub Actions, commitizen and commitlint. This is what we could verify from public sources, so the vendor may support others we have not indexed.","source":"https://semantic-release.gitbook.io/semantic-release/","question":"What does semantic-release integrate with?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. semantic-release is published under the MIT 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/semantic-release/semantic-release","question":"Is semantic-release open source?","confidence":0.95}]` |
| deployment.options | `{"self_hosted":true}` | `{"self_hosted":true}` |
| description.long | Generates changelogs from Git repositories with support for conventional commits and custom regex-powered parsing rules, fully configurable through configuration files. | A tool that analyzes commit history to automatically determine the next semantic version, generate release notes, and publish packages to package managers, supporting any language or package manager. |
| features.capabilities | `{"semver_automation":true,"open_source_self_host":true,"conventional_commits_support":true}` | `{"ci_cd_integration":true,"semver_automation":true,"open_source_self_host":true,"conventional_commits_support":true}` |
| integrations.count | 7 | 4 |
| integrations.list | `[{"name":"GitHub","native":true,"category":"git","direction":"inbound"},{"name":"GitLab","native":true,"category":"git","direction":"inbound"},{"name":"Gitea","native":true,"category":"git","direction":"inbound"},{"name":"Bitbucket","native":true,"category":"git","direction":"inbound"},{"name":"Azure DevOps","native":true,"category":"git","direction":"inbound"},{"name":"Rust","native":true},{"name":"Python","native":true}]` | `[{"name":"npm"},{"name":"GitHub Actions"},{"name":"commitizen"},{"name":"commitlint"}]` |
| language.primary | Rust | JavaScript |
| license.spdx | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| platform.support | `{"cli":true}` | `{"cli":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"open_source","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://git-cliff.org/","retrievedAt":"2026-08-18T12:52:17.030Z"}` | `{"type":"open_source","sourceUrl":"https://semantic-release.gitbook.io/semantic-release/","retrievedAt":"2026-09-13T19:28:29.424Z"}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | open_source | open_source |
| pricing.price_level | free | free |
| pricing.transparent | yes | - |
| release.cadence_days | 37 | 2 |
| release.history | `[{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.14.2","date":"2026-09-18T21:22:51Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.14.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.14.1","date":"2026-09-01T14:46:30Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.14.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.13.1","date":"2026-04-26T10:17:56Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.13.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.13.0","date":"2026-04-26T09:32:09Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.13.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.12.0","date":"2026-01-20T17:33:37Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.12.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.11.0","date":"2025-12-14T15:47:22Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.11.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.10.1","date":"2025-09-21T16:28:05Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.10.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.10.0","date":"2025-07-27T12:22:46Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.10.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.10.0-rc.0","date":"2025-07-27T12:03:48Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v2.10.0-rc.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.9.1","date":"2025-06-03T10:58:24Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.9.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.9.0","date":"2025-06-02T11:22:42Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.9.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.8.0","date":"2025-01-24T14:50:55Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.8.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.7.0","date":"2024-11-20T10:58:53Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.7.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.6.1","date":"2024-09-27T15:49:08Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.6.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.6.0","date":"2024-09-22T06:26:48Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.6.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.5.0","date":"2024-08-24T08:13:21Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.5.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.4.0","date":"2024-06-26T10:11:32Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.4.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.3.0","date":"2024-06-03T11:24:22Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.3.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.2.2","date":"2024-05-11T20:06:58Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.2.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/orhun/git-cliff/releases/tag/v2.2.1","date":"2024-04-10T22:34:29Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.2.1"}]` | `[{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.1.0-alpha.1","date":"2026-10-06T05:43:53Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v25.1.0-alpha.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v26.0.0-beta.2","date":"2026-09-25T18:24:06Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v26.0.0-beta.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v26.0.0-beta.1","date":"2026-08-07T17:13:59Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v26.0.0-beta.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.9","date":"2026-08-05T04:42:47Z","type":"stable","version":"v25.0.9"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.8","date":"2026-07-18T00:24:33Z","type":"stable","version":"v25.0.8"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.7","date":"2026-07-13T05:23:58Z","type":"stable","version":"v25.0.7"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.6","date":"2026-07-10T22:09:52Z","type":"stable","version":"v25.0.6"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.5","date":"2026-06-09T23:09:48Z","type":"stable","version":"v25.0.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.4","date":"2026-06-09T18:00:56Z","type":"stable","version":"v25.0.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.3","date":"2026-01-30T21:12:55Z","type":"stable","version":"v25.0.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.2","date":"2025-11-07T20:22:16Z","type":"stable","version":"v25.0.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.1","date":"2025-10-19T21:23:10Z","type":"stable","version":"v25.0.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.1-beta.3","date":"2025-10-19T18:29:49Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v25.0.1-beta.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.1-beta.2","date":"2025-10-19T16:33:30Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v25.0.1-beta.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.1-beta.1","date":"2025-10-16T03:46:12Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v25.0.1-beta.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.1-alpha.4","date":"2025-10-16T03:32:45Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v25.0.1-alpha.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.1-alpha.3","date":"2025-10-15T19:40:44Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v25.0.1-alpha.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.1-alpha.2","date":"2025-10-15T16:41:32Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v25.0.1-alpha.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.1-alpha.1","date":"2025-10-15T16:39:50Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v25.0.1-alpha.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/semantic-release/semantic-release/releases/tag/v25.0.0","date":"2025-10-15T15:58:56Z","type":"stable","version":"v25.0.0"}]` |
| security.scorecard | 6.8 | 7.8 |
| security.vulnerabilities | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=npm&package_name=git-cliff&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` | `{"count":2,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=npm&package_name=semantic-release&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":"HIGH"}` |

## Capabilities (Changelog Tools)

| Capability | git-cliff | semantic-release |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Capabilities** |  |  |
| Conventional commits support | ✓ | ✓ |
| Semver automation | ✓ | ✓ |
| Public hosted page | - | - |
| Embeddable widget | - | - |
| Custom domain whitelabel | - | - |
| Audience segmentation | - | - |
| Monorepo support | - | - |
| Ci cd integration | - | ✓ |
| AI assisted drafting | - | - |
| View analytics | - | - |
| Open source self host | ✓ | ✓ |

*Source: vioscaleAI. Generated 2026-10-16T19:16:09.635Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*