# release-drafter vs semantic-release

| Attribute | release-drafter | semantic-release |
|---|---|---|
| **vioscaleAI score** | 61.5 (61% (medium)) | 59 (60% (medium)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | 100 | 4 |
| adoption.dependent_repos | 15,868 | 135,472 |
| adoption.github_stars | 3,948 | 24,103 |
| content.faq | `[{"answer":"A GitHub Action that maintains an up-to-date draft release by categorizing merged pull requests. Supports custom templates, semantic versioning, contributor tracking, and automated version resolution. It is indexed under Changelog Tools.","source":"https://github.com/pricing","question":"What is release-drafter?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"release-drafter is open source, so it can be self-hosted and used at no licence cost. It is released under the ISC licence. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://github.com/pricing","question":"Is release-drafter free to use?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have confirmed browser-based access to release-drafter. That is the extent of what we could verify from public sources, so it may well offer desktop or mobile clients we have not indexed.","source":"https://github.com/pricing","question":"What platforms does release-drafter support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have only confirmed a cloud / SaaS deployment for release-drafter, so it appears to be vendor-hosted. If a self-hosted option exists we have not found it documented publicly.","source":"https://github.com/pricing","question":"Can release-drafter be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. release-drafter is published under the ISC 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/release-drafter/release-drafter","question":"Is release-drafter 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 | `{"cloud":true,"self_hosted":true}` | `{"self_hosted":true}` |
| description.long | Release Drafter is a GitHub Action that generates and manages release notes automatically. It creates drafts based on merged pull requests, supporting semantic versioning, conventional commits, and customizable release templates with category-based organization. | 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 | `{"ci_cd_integration":true,"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 | 5 | 4 |
| integrations.list | `[{"name":"GitHub"},{"name":"GitHub Enterprise Server","native":true,"direction":"bidirectional"},{"name":"GitLab","native":true,"direction":"bidirectional"},{"name":"Gitea","native":true,"direction":"bidirectional"},{"name":"Forgejo","native":true,"direction":"bidirectional"}]` | `[{"name":"npm"},{"name":"GitHub Actions"},{"name":"commitizen"},{"name":"commitlint"}]` |
| language.primary | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| license.spdx | ISC | MIT |
| platform.support | `{"cli":true,"web":true}` | `{"cli":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"open_source","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://github.com/pricing","retrievedAt":"2026-10-14T21:31:50.088Z"}` | `{"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 |
| release.cadence_days | 8 | 2 |
| release.history | `[{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v7.10.0","date":"2026-10-07T16:47:35Z","type":"stable","version":"v7.10.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v7.9.0","date":"2026-10-02T03:02:48Z","type":"stable","version":"v7.9.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v7.8.0","date":"2026-10-01T17:03:55Z","type":"stable","version":"v7.8.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v7.7.0","date":"2026-07-29T09:43:52Z","type":"stable","version":"v7.7.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v7.6.0","date":"2026-07-19T12:24:50Z","type":"stable","version":"v7.6.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v7.5.1","date":"2026-06-25T14:28:38Z","type":"stable","version":"v7.5.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v7.5.0","date":"2026-06-25T06:58:01Z","type":"stable","version":"v7.5.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v7.4.0","date":"2026-06-16T13:13:06Z","type":"stable","version":"v7.4.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v7.3.1","date":"2026-05-25T09:26:22Z","type":"stable","version":"v7.3.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v7.3.0","date":"2026-05-08T07:23:58Z","type":"stable","version":"v7.3.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v7.2.1","date":"2026-04-29T19:28:06Z","type":"stable","version":"v7.2.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v7.2.0","date":"2026-04-09T15:19:48Z","type":"stable","version":"v7.2.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v7.1.1","date":"2026-03-18T18:05:24Z","type":"stable","version":"v7.1.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v7.1.0","date":"2026-03-17T16:50:28Z","type":"stable","version":"v7.1.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v7.0.0","date":"2026-03-13T15:02:21Z","type":"stable","version":"v7.0.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v6.4.0","date":"2026-03-07T17:13:46Z","type":"stable","version":"v6.4.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v6.3.0","date":"2026-03-06T08:48:25Z","type":"stable","version":"v6.3.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v6.2.0","date":"2026-01-22T09:49:31Z","type":"stable","version":"v6.2.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v6.1.1","date":"2026-01-19T19:02:20Z","type":"stable","version":"v6.1.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/release-drafter/release-drafter/releases/tag/v6.1.0","date":"2025-01-19T14:45:46Z","type":"stable","version":"v6.1.0"}]` | `[{"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 | 4.7 | 7.8 |
| security.trust_center | https://github.com/security | - |
| security.vulnerabilities | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=actions&package_name=release-drafter%2Frelease-drafter&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 | release-drafter | 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 2026-10-17T05:44:25.228Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*