# CLI11 vs picocli

| Attribute | CLI11 | picocli |
|---|---|---|
| **Vioscale score** | 52.1 (14% (low)) | 47.3 (24% (low)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | 45 | 1 |
| adoption.dependent_repos | 1 | 4,237 |
| adoption.github_stars | 4,424 | 5,414 |
| description.long | CLI11 is a C++ library for building command-line tools. It offers an intuitive API for defining command options, subcommands, and configuration files with no external dependencies beyond C++11, and is tested across Linux, macOS, and Windows. | An open-source framework that simplifies CLI development by handling argument parsing, type conversion, validation, and formatted help generation through an annotation-based API. |
| language.primary | C++ | Java |
| license.spdx | - | Apache-2.0 |
| platform.support | `{"cli":true,"mac":true,"linux":true,"windows":true}` | - |
| pricing | `{"type":"open_source","sourceUrl":"https://cliutils.github.io/CLI11/","retrievedAt":"2026-08-18T12:55:28.057Z"}` | `{"type":"open_source","summary":"Open source, free to use","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://picocli.info","retrievedAt":"2026-08-18T12:55:42.406Z"}` |
| pricing.free_tier | - | yes |
| pricing.model | commercial | commercial |
| pricing.price_level | free | free |
| release.cadence_days | 86 | 70 |
| release.history | `[{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.7.2","date":"2026-08-02T14:12:37Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.7.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.7.1","date":"2026-07-31T14:21:47Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.7.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.7.0","date":"2026-07-30T22:06:37Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.7.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.6.2","date":"2026-02-26T14:44:25Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.6.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.6.1","date":"2025-10-27T13:19:41Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.6.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.6.0","date":"2025-10-20T13:10:54Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.6.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.5.0","date":"2025-02-27T12:29:12Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.5.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.4.2","date":"2024-05-04T04:56:04Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.4.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.4.1","date":"2024-02-08T03:17:44Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.4.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.4.0","date":"2024-02-05T04:07:04Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.4.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.3.2","date":"2023-01-04T04:09:13Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.3.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.3.1","date":"2022-11-01T03:57:58Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.3.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.3.0","date":"2022-10-06T04:23:10Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.3.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.2.0","date":"2022-03-27T03:47:26Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.2.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.1.2","date":"2021-10-18T14:15:41Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.1.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.1.1","date":"2021-09-29T13:05:57Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.1.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.1.0","date":"2021-09-20T20:11:34Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.1.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v2.0.0","date":"2021-07-14T15:39:09Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.0.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v1.9.1","date":"2020-06-20T14:34:02Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.9.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/CLIUtils/CLI11/releases/tag/v1.9.0","date":"2020-01-19T23:03:12Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.9.0"}]` | `[{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.7.7","date":"2025-04-19T01:21:10Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.7.7"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.7.6","date":"2024-05-08T00:30:14Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.7.6"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.7.5","date":"2023-08-26T23:07:39Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.7.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.7.4","date":"2023-06-03T01:14:54Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.7.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.7.3","date":"2023-04-16T07:27:27Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.7.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.7.2","date":"2023-04-09T09:56:16Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.7.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.7.1","date":"2023-01-29T00:25:09Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.7.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.7.0","date":"2022-10-31T20:13:08Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.7.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.6.3","date":"2022-02-09T10:12:55Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.6.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.6.2","date":"2021-11-05T12:19:12Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.6.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.6.1","date":"2021-01-03T03:42:08Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.6.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.6.0","date":"2021-01-01T10:37:14Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.6.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.5.2","date":"2020-10-14T12:12:53Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.5.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.5.1","date":"2020-08-26T05:33:28Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.5.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.5.0","date":"2020-08-01T03:13:06Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.5.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.4.0","date":"2020-07-05T02:40:06Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.4.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.3.2","date":"2020-05-16T09:30:47Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.3.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.3.1","date":"2020-05-14T23:14:03Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.3.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.3.0","date":"2020-05-12T22:57:52Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.3.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/remkop/picocli/releases/tag/v4.2.0","date":"2020-02-11T23:25:24Z","type":"stable","version":"v4.2.0"}]` |
| security.scorecard | - | 6 |
| security.vulnerabilities | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=conda&package_name=cli11&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=maven&package_name=info.picocli%3Apicocli&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` |

## Capabilities (CLI Frameworks)

| Capability | CLI11 | picocli |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Capabilities** |  |  |
| Language | - | - |
| Design style | - | - |
| Nested subcommands | - | - |
| Auto generated help | - | - |
| Plugin system | - | - |
| Interactive prompts | - | - |
| Type validation | - | - |
| Styled rich output | - | - |
| Project scaffolding | - | - |
| Test harness | - | - |
| Open source | - | - |
| License | - | - |

*Source: Vioscale. Generated 2026-09-01T14:53:53.052Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*