# Checkstyle vs Pylint

**Leader by Vioscale score:** Pylint

| Attribute | Checkstyle | Pylint |
|---|---|---|
| **Vioscale score** | 61.4 (54% (medium)) | 72.2 (54% (medium)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | 100 | 96 |
| adoption.dependent_repos | 1,425 | 117,361 |
| adoption.github_stars | 9,001 | 5,715 |
| deployment.options | `{"self_hosted":true}` | `{"self_hosted":true}` |
| description.long | A development tool that automatically scans Java code to verify adherence to coding standards, detecting style violations, design problems, and formatting issues. Supports customizable rule sets and integrates with build tools and IDEs. | 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. |
| features.capabilities | `{"autofix":false,"metrics":true,"function":"static_analyzer","ci_gating":true,"deployment":"cli_local","open_source":"oss","config_model":"config_file","custom_rules":true,"impl_language":"Java","pricing_model":"free","language_scope":"single_language"}` | `{"autofix":false,"metrics":true,"function":"linter","ci_gating":true,"deployment":"cli_local","open_source":"oss","config_model":"config_file","custom_rules":true,"impl_language":"Python","pricing_model":"free","language_scope":"single_language","editor_integration":true}` |
| integrations.count | 2 | 10 |
| integrations.list | `[{"name":"Maven"},{"name":"Ant"}]` | `[{"name":"Vim"},{"name":"Emacs"},{"name":"Eclipse"},{"name":"TextMate"},{"name":"PyDev"},{"name":"Spyder"},{"name":"Editra"},{"name":"Jenkins"},{"name":"Hudson"},{"name":"Apycot"}]` |
| language.primary | Java | Python |
| license.spdx | LGPL-2.1 | GPL-2.0 |
| platform.support | `{"cli":true}` | `{"cli":true,"mac":true,"linux":true,"windows":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"free","sourceUrl":"https://checkstyle.org/","retrievedAt":"2026-08-14T08:38:14.583Z"}` | `{"type":"free","summary":"Free and open source. Commercial support services available.","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://www.pylint.org/","retrievedAt":"2026-08-14T11:08:27.719Z"}` |
| pricing.free_tier | - | yes |
| pricing.model | commercial | commercial |
| pricing.price_level | free | free |
| pricing.transparent | yes | yes |
| release.cadence_days | 14 | 24 |
| release.history | `[{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-14.0.0","date":"2026-08-18T13:09:20Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-14.0.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-13.11.0","date":"2026-08-16T21:52:20Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-13.11.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-13.10.0","date":"2026-08-09T17:48:41Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-13.10.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-13.9.0","date":"2026-07-27T01:04:59Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-13.9.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-13.8.0","date":"2026-07-12T02:55:15Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-13.8.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-13.7.0","date":"2026-06-28T15:13:54Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-13.7.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-13.6.0","date":"2026-06-15T03:24:52Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-13.6.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-13.5.0","date":"2026-05-30T20:22:13Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-13.5.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-13.4.2","date":"2026-05-02T04:07:51Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-13.4.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-13.4.1","date":"2026-04-27T12:43:10Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-13.4.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-13.4.0","date":"2026-03-29T17:41:44Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-13.4.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-13.3.0","date":"2026-02-28T17:36:40Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-13.3.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-13.2.0","date":"2026-02-05T20:28:40Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-13.2.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-13.1.0","date":"2026-01-31T17:26:20Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-13.1.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-13.0.0","date":"2026-01-04T23:48:39Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-13.0.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-12.3.1","date":"2025-12-31T15:42:54Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-12.3.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-12.3.0","date":"2025-12-13T15:50:49Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-12.3.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-12.2.0","date":"2025-11-30T13:55:29Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-12.2.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-12.1.2","date":"2025-11-11T16:40:51Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-12.1.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/checkstyle/checkstyle/releases/tag/checkstyle-12.1.1","date":"2025-10-26T14:12:24Z","type":"stable","version":"checkstyle-12.1.1"}]` | `[{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v4.0.7","date":"2026-08-09T19:12:32Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.0.7"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v4.0.6","date":"2026-06-14T14:42:38Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.0.6"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v4.0.5","date":"2026-02-20T09:06:45Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.0.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v4.0.4","date":"2025-11-30T13:28:26Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.0.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v4.0.3","date":"2025-11-13T15:53:59Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.0.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v4.0.2","date":"2025-10-20T13:01:44Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.0.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v4.0.1","date":"2025-10-15T05:40:09Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.0.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v4.0.0","date":"2025-10-12T15:16:43Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.0.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v3.3.9","date":"2025-10-05T18:37:27Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.3.9"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v3.3.8","date":"2025-08-09T09:12:00Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.3.8"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v3.3.7","date":"2025-05-04T17:07:12Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.3.7"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v3.3.6","date":"2025-03-20T11:24:54Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.3.6"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v3.3.5","date":"2025-03-09T06:47:06Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.3.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v3.3.5a0","date":"2025-03-08T22:20:59Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v3.3.5a0"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v3.3.4","date":"2025-01-28T13:27:51Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.3.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v3.3.3","date":"2024-12-24T02:30:21Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.3.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v3.3.2","date":"2024-12-01T18:45:02Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.3.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v3.3.1","date":"2024-09-24T11:10:22Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.3.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v3.3.0","date":"2024-09-20T13:03:35Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.3.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/pylint-dev/pylint/releases/tag/v3.2.7","date":"2024-08-31T14:25:58Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.2.7"}]` |
| reliability.status_page | yes | - |
| security.scorecard | 6.7 | 8.1 |
| security.vulnerabilities | `{"count":2,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=maven&package_name=com.puppycrawl.tools%3Acheckstyle&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":"MODERATE"}` | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=pypi&package_name=pylint&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` |

## Capabilities (Code Quality Tools)

| Capability | Checkstyle | Pylint |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Core** |  |  |
| Function | Static analyzer | Linter |
| Language scope | Single-language | Single-language |
| Implementation language | Java | Python |
| **Capability** |  |  |
| Autofix | ✗ | ✗ |
| **Config** |  |  |
| Config model | Config file | Config file |
| **Extensibility** |  |  |
| Custom rules | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Deployment** |  |  |
| Deployment | CLI-local | 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 2026-09-01T16:30:45.810Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*