vioscale
Comparison

GitHub Actions vs Jenkins

On the evidence we track, GitHub Actions 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.

GitHub Actions full profile →Jenkins full profile →
Machine formatsJSONMarkdownGraphQLor send Accept: application/json
★GitHub Actions72
Jenkins55
Score
Vioscale score
GitHub Actions72 / 100medium · 74%updating
Jenkins55 / 100high · 75%updating
Pricing
Free tier
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✓
Model
GitHub Actionsfreemium
Jenkinscommercial
Price level
GitHub Actionslow
Jenkinsfree
Transparent
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✓
Integrations
Count
GitHub Actions17
Jenkins1
Security
Disclosure policy
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✓
Gdpr
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins–
Iso27001
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins–
Scorecard
GitHub Actions–
Jenkins5.5
Soc2
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✓
Vulnerabilities
Reliability
Status page
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✓
Adoption
Dependent repos
GitHub Actions–
Jenkins0
Github stars
GitHub Actions–
Jenkins26,498
Stackoverflow questions
GitHub Actions42,000
Jenkins–
Activity
Commits last 30d
GitHub Actions–
Jenkins81
Release
Cadence days
GitHub Actions–
Jenkins5
History
GitHub Actions–
Jenkins20 items
License
Spdx
GitHub Actions–
JenkinsMIT
Language
Primary
GitHub Actions–
JenkinsJava
Market
Availability
Content
Faq
GitHub Actions7 items
Jenkins–
Hosting
Model
GitHub Actionscloud
Jenkins–

Capabilities

Feature-by-feature on the axes that matter for ci/cd tools. “-” means undocumented, not absent.

Deployment
Hosting
GitHub ActionsCloud + self-hosted
JenkinsSelf-hosted only
Self-hosted runners
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✓
Core
Config-as-code pipelines
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✓
Matrix / parallel builds
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✓
Build
Container-native builds
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins-
Performance
Build caching
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins-
Security
Secrets management
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins-
Delivery
Deployment environments & approvals
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✓
Ecosystem
Reusable actions / marketplace
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✓

What each one is

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

GitHub Actions

Leader

GitHub Actions enables developers to automatically build, test, and deploy code from their repositories. It supports parallel matrix builds across multiple environments, integrates with thousands of community-contributed actions, and can be extended with custom workflows written in declarative YAML.

Independently observed

Jenkins

A self-contained Java application that automates building, testing, and deployment workflows. Extensible through hundreds of community-maintained plugins and supports distributing work across multiple machines.

Independently observed

Pricing

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

GitHub Actions

Leader
from $4/moSubscriptionFree tier30-day trial

Free tier available. Paid plans from $4/user/month.

  • FreeFree
    • Unlimited public/private repositories
    • Dependabot security and version updates
    • 2,000 CI/CD minutes/month
    • 500MB Packages storage
    • Issues & Projects
    • +1 more
  • Team$4/user/month
    • Everything in Free
    • GitHub Codespaces access
    • Repository rules and branch protection
    • Multiple reviewers in pull requests
    • Draft pull requests
    • +7 more
  • EnterpriseContact sales
    • Everything in Team
    • Advanced security and compliance features
    • Flexible deployment options
as of verify ↗

Jenkins

Open sourceFree tier
as of verify ↗

Platform & deployment

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

Platforms
Web
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✓
macOS
GitHub Actions✗
Jenkins✓
Windows
GitHub Actions✗
Jenkins✓
Linux
GitHub Actions✗
Jenkins✓
CLI
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✓
Deployment
Cloud / SaaS
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✗
Self-hosted
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✓
On-premise
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✗
Hybrid
GitHub Actions✓
Jenkins✗

Integrations

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

GitHub Actions

Leader
17 total
  • Jira
  • npm
  • Docker
  • GitHub Packages
  • GitHub Pages
  • CodeQL
  • Slack
  • AWS
  • Azure
  • Google Cloud
  • Kubernetes
  • TruffleHog
  • Prowler
  • Gosec
  • Super-Linter
  • Claude
  • OpenCommit
Independently observed

Jenkins

1 total
  • Subversion
Independently observed

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