Comparison

Pylint vs SpotBugs

On the evidence we track, Pylint 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.

Machine formatsJSONMarkdownGraphQLor send Accept: application/json
Pylint72
SpotBugs54
Score
Vioscale score
Pylint72 / 100medium · 54%
SpotBugs54 / 100low · 49%
Pricing
Free tier
Pylint
SpotBugs
Model
SpotBugsopen_source
Price level
Pylintfree
SpotBugsfree
Transparent
Pylint
SpotBugs
Integrations
Count
Pylint10
SpotBugs6
Reliability
Status page
Pylint
SpotBugs
Adoption
Dependent repos
Pylint117,361
SpotBugs2,768
Github stars
Pylint5,715
SpotBugs3,925
Activity
Commits last 30d
Pylint96
SpotBugs34
Release
Cadence days
Pylint24
SpotBugs24
History
Pylint20 items
SpotBugs20 items
License
Spdx
PylintGPL-2.0
SpotBugsLGPL-2.1
Language
Primary
PylintPython
SpotBugsJava

Capabilities

Feature-by-feature on the axes that matter for code quality tools. “-” means undocumented, not absent.

Core
Function
PylintLinter
SpotBugsStatic analyzer
Language scope
PylintSingle-language
SpotBugsSingle-language
Implementation language
PylintPython
SpotBugsJava
Capability
Autofix
Pylint
SpotBugs
Config
Config model
PylintConfig file
SpotBugsRule packs
Extensibility
Custom rules
Pylint
SpotBugs
Deployment
Deployment
PylintCLI-local
SpotBugsCLI-local
Delivery
Editor integration
Pylint
SpotBugs
CI / VCS gating
Pylint
SpotBugs-
Insight
Code metrics
Pylint
SpotBugs-
Performance
Incremental / monorepo aware
Pylint-
SpotBugs-
Licensing
Open-source
PylintOSS
SpotBugsOSS
Commercial
Pricing model
PylintFree
SpotBugsFree

What each one is

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

Pylint

Leader

Pylint automatically scans Python source code to identify problems with coding standards compliance, detect runtime errors, and suggest refactoring improvements. It supports extensive customization through configuration files and plugins.

Independently observed

SpotBugs

An open-source utility that examines Java source code to identify potential programming issues without executing it. It integrates with build tools and IDEs through plugins and supports community-contributed or custom analysis rules.

Independently observed

Pricing

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

Pylint

Leader
FreeFree tier

Free and open source. Commercial support services available.

as of verify ↗

SpotBugs

Open source
as of verify ↗

Platform & deployment

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

Platforms
macOS
Pylint
SpotBugs
Windows
Pylint
SpotBugs
Linux
Pylint
SpotBugs
CLI
Pylint
SpotBugs
Deployment
Self-hosted
Pylint
SpotBugs
On-premise
Pylint
SpotBugs

Integrations

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

In common (1)
  • Eclipse

Pylint

Leader
10 total - 9 not shared
  • Vim
  • Emacs
  • TextMate
  • PyDev
  • Spyder
  • Editra
  • Jenkins
  • Hudson
  • Apycot
Independently observed

SpotBugs

6 total - 5 not shared
  • Maven
  • Gradle
  • Ant
  • fb-contrib
  • find-sec-bugs
Independently observed

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