Comparison

GitHub Container Registry vs Harbor

On the evidence we track, Harbor leads this comparison with a composite score of 66/100. Scores are only directly comparable because these tools share a category; the full breakdown and every source is below.

Machine formatsMarkdownJSONGraphQLMarkdown is open. JSON and GraphQL need a free key.
GitHub Container Registry37
★Harbor66
Score
vioscaleAI score
GitHub Container Registry37 / 100medium · 74%
Harbor66 / 100high · 77%
Pricing
Free tier
GitHub Container Registry✓
Harbor✓
Model
GitHub Container Registryfreemium
Price level
GitHub Container Registrylow
Harborfree
Transparent
GitHub Container Registry✗
Harbor✓
Integrations
Count
GitHub Container Registry2
Harbor6
Security
Disclosure policy
GitHub Container Registry–
Harbor✓
Scorecard
GitHub Container Registry–
Harbor7.5
Reliability
Status page
GitHub Container Registry✓
Harbor✓
Adoption
Dependent repos
GitHub Container Registry–
Harbor31
Github stars
GitHub Container Registry–
Harbor29,540
Activity
Commits last 30d
GitHub Container Registry–
Harbor58
Release
Cadence days
GitHub Container Registry–
Harbor3
History
GitHub Container Registry–
Harbor20 items
License
Spdx
GitHub Container Registry–
Language
Primary
GitHub Container Registry–
HarborGo
Content
Faq
GitHub Container Registry5 items
Harbor6 items

Capabilities

Feature-by-feature on the axes that matter for container registries. “-” means undocumented, not absent.

Deployment
Hosting
GitHub Container Registry-
HarborSelf-hosted only
Standards
OCI Distribution Spec compliant
GitHub Container Registry-
Harbor✓
Scope
Artifact types
GitHub Container Registry-
HarborImages + Helm/OCI artifacts
Security
Built-in vulnerability scanning
GitHub Container Registry-
Harbor✓
Image signing (Cosign/Notation)
GitHub Container Registry-
Harbor✓
SBOM generation / storage
GitHub Container Registry-
Harbor-
Access
Fine-grained RBAC / robot accounts
GitHub Container Registry-
Harbor✓
Private repositories
GitHub Container Registry-
Harbor✓
Distribution
Geo-replication / mirroring
GitHub Container Registry-
Harbor✓
Pull-through cache / proxy
GitHub Container Registry-
Harbor✓
Integration
Native cloud IAM integration
GitHub Container Registry-
Harbor-
Pricing
Pull-rate limits
GitHub Container Registry-
Harbor-
UX
Web UI / console
GitHub Container Registry✓
Harbor✓
Ops
High-availability deployment
GitHub Container Registry-
Harbor✓

What each one is

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

GitHub Container Registry

A workflow automation platform integrated with GitHub that allows you to automatically build, test, and deploy code directly from your repository. Supports multiple programming languages and execution environments including containers, virtual machines, and various operating systems.

Independently observed

Harbor

Leader

A self-hosted Docker Distribution extension that provides centralized storage for container images and Helm charts with integrated security features including image signing, vulnerability scanning, user authentication, access control, and cross-registry replication.

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 Container Registry

HybridFree tier
as of verify ↗

Harbor

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.

Platforms
Web
GitHub Container Registry✓
Harbor✓
Linux
GitHub Container Registry✗
Harbor✓
CLI
GitHub Container Registry✗
Harbor✓
Deployment
Cloud / SaaS
GitHub Container Registry✓
Harbor✗
Self-hosted
GitHub Container Registry✓
Harbor✓
On-premise
GitHub Container Registry✓
Harbor✓
Hybrid
GitHub Container Registry✓
Harbor✗

Integrations

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

In common (1)
  • Docker

GitHub Container Registry

4 total - 3 not shared
  • Jira
  • npm
  • GitHub Packages
Independently observed

Harbor

Leader
8 total - 7 not shared
  • Trivy
  • Cosign
  • Redis
  • Valkey
  • LDAP
  • Active Directory
  • Helm
Independently observed
Still deciding?

GitHub Container Registry or Harbor: 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.