# Black vs SpotBugs

**Leader by Vioscale score:** Black

| Attribute | Black | SpotBugs |
|---|---|---|
| **Vioscale score** | 72.7 (78% (high)) | 53.7 (49% (low)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | 29 | 34 |
| adoption.dependent_repos | 105,588 | 2,768 |
| adoption.github_stars | 41,816 | 3,925 |
| adoption.package_downloads_weekly | 39,005,228 | - |
| deployment.options | `{"self_hosted":true}` | `{"on_prem":true,"self_hosted":true}` |
| description.long | An opinionated Python code formatter that automatically reformats code according to a standardized style. It produces minimal diffs for cleaner code review and reduces developer cognitive load by removing formatting decisions, allowing focus on code logic. | 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. |
| features.capabilities | `{"autofix":true,"metrics":false,"function":"formatter","ci_gating":true,"deployment":"both","incremental":false,"open_source":"oss","config_model":"zero_config","custom_rules":false,"impl_language":"Python","pricing_model":"free","language_scope":"single_language","editor_integration":true}` | `{"autofix":false,"function":"static_analyzer","deployment":"cli_local","open_source":"oss","config_model":"rule_packs","custom_rules":true,"impl_language":"Java","pricing_model":"free","language_scope":"single_language","editor_integration":true}` |
| integrations.count | 8 | 6 |
| integrations.list | `[{"name":"Neovim"},{"name":"conform.nvim"},{"name":"ALE"},{"name":"SublimeText"},{"name":"Pre-commit"},{"name":"Jupyter Notebooks"},{"name":"blacken-docs"},{"name":"blackdoc"}]` | `[{"name":"Maven"},{"name":"Gradle"},{"name":"Eclipse"},{"name":"Ant"},{"name":"fb-contrib"},{"name":"find-sec-bugs"}]` |
| language.primary | Python | Java |
| license.spdx | MIT | LGPL-2.1 |
| platform.support | `{"cli":true}` | `{"cli":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"open_source","summary":"Free and open source (MIT licensed)","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://black.readthedocs.io/en/stable/","retrievedAt":"2026-08-14T13:47:36.307Z"}` | `{"type":"open_source","sourceUrl":"https://spotbugs.github.io/","retrievedAt":"2026-08-14T08:33:37.010Z"}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | open_source | open_source |
| pricing.price_level | free | free |
| pricing.transparent | yes | - |
| release.cadence_days | 31 | 24 |
| release.history | `[{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/26.5.1","date":"2026-05-18T16:52:38Z","type":"stable","version":"26.5.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/26.5.0","date":"2026-05-16T17:56:23Z","type":"stable","version":"26.5.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/26.3.1","date":"2026-03-12T03:35:15Z","type":"stable","version":"26.3.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/26.3.0","date":"2026-03-06T17:41:48Z","type":"stable","version":"26.3.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/26.1.0","date":"2026-01-18T04:49:25Z","type":"stable","version":"26.1.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/26.1a1","date":"2025-12-08T01:46:21Z","type":"prerelease","version":"26.1a1"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/25.12.0","date":"2025-12-08T01:40:32Z","type":"stable","version":"25.12.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/25.11.0","date":"2025-11-10T01:53:31Z","type":"stable","version":"25.11.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/25.9.0","date":"2025-09-19T00:27:15Z","type":"stable","version":"25.9.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/25.1.0","date":"2025-01-29T04:15:11Z","type":"stable","version":"25.1.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/24.10.0","date":"2024-10-07T19:20:06Z","type":"stable","version":"24.10.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/24.8.0","date":"2024-08-02T17:42:53Z","type":"stable","version":"24.8.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/24.4.2","date":"2024-04-26T00:31:27Z","type":"stable","version":"24.4.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/24.4.1","date":"2024-04-24T15:17:30Z","type":"stable","version":"24.4.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/24.4.0","date":"2024-04-12T20:13:48Z","type":"stable","version":"24.4.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/24.3.0","date":"2024-03-15T19:35:14Z","type":"stable","version":"24.3.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/24.2.0","date":"2024-02-12T20:20:40Z","type":"stable","version":"24.2.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/24.1.1","date":"2024-01-28T05:28:09Z","type":"stable","version":"24.1.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/24.1.0","date":"2024-01-26T05:11:50Z","type":"stable","version":"24.1.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/psf/black/releases/tag/23.12.1","date":"2023-12-22T23:05:40Z","type":"stable","version":"23.12.1"}]` | `[{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.10.4","date":"2026-08-20T03:22:34Z","type":"stable","version":"4.10.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.10.3","date":"2026-07-12T23:54:13Z","type":"stable","version":"4.10.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.10.2","date":"2026-06-09T20:24:17Z","type":"stable","version":"4.10.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.10.1","date":"2026-06-08T13:19:51Z","type":"stable","version":"4.10.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.10.0","date":"2026-06-08T01:28:41Z","type":"stable","version":"4.10.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.9.8","date":"2025-10-18T16:45:29Z","type":"stable","version":"4.9.8"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.9.7","date":"2025-10-14T22:32:35Z","type":"stable","version":"4.9.7"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.9.6","date":"2025-09-17T02:07:29Z","type":"stable","version":"4.9.6"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.9.5","date":"2025-09-15T01:58:47Z","type":"stable","version":"4.9.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.9.4","date":"2025-08-10T00:26:10Z","type":"stable","version":"4.9.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.9.3","date":"2025-03-15T19:18:36Z","type":"stable","version":"4.9.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.9.2","date":"2025-03-01T20:12:52Z","type":"stable","version":"4.9.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.9.1","date":"2025-02-05T16:59:04Z","type":"stable","version":"4.9.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.9.0","date":"2025-01-16T05:16:00Z","type":"stable","version":"4.9.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.8.6","date":"2024-06-18T02:46:58Z","type":"stable","version":"4.8.6"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.8.5","date":"2024-05-03T23:22:14Z","type":"stable","version":"4.8.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.8.4","date":"2024-04-23T13:33:59Z","type":"stable","version":"4.8.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.8.3","date":"2023-12-12T10:47:36Z","type":"stable","version":"4.8.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.8.2","date":"2023-11-29T04:06:02Z","type":"stable","version":"4.8.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/spotbugs/spotbugs/releases/tag/4.8.1","date":"2023-11-07T02:19:27Z","type":"stable","version":"4.8.1"}]` |
| reliability.status_page | - | yes |
| security.disclosure_policy | yes | - |
| security.scorecard | 7.7 | 5.1 |
| security.vulnerabilities | `{"count":2,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=pypi&package_name=black&per_page=100","last_12m":1,"max_severity":"HIGH"}` | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=maven&package_name=com.github.spotbugs%3Aspotbugs-annotations&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` |

## Capabilities (Code Quality Tools)

| Capability | Black | SpotBugs |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Core** |  |  |
| Function | Formatter | Static analyzer |
| Language scope | Single-language | Single-language |
| Implementation language | Python | Java |
| **Capability** |  |  |
| Autofix | ✓ | ✗ |
| **Config** |  |  |
| Config model | Zero-config | Rule packs |
| **Extensibility** |  |  |
| Custom rules | ✗ | ✓ |
| **Deployment** |  |  |
| Deployment | Both | CLI-local |
| **Delivery** |  |  |
| Editor integration | ✓ | ✓ |
| CI / VCS gating | ✓ | - |
| **Insight** |  |  |
| Code metrics | ✗ | - |
| **Performance** |  |  |
| Incremental / monorepo aware | ✗ | - |
| **Licensing** |  |  |
| Open-source | OSS | OSS |
| **Commercial** |  |  |
| Pricing model | Free | Free |

*Source: Vioscale. Generated 2026-09-01T17:13:29.406Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*