# Read the Docs vs ReadMe

| Attribute | Read the Docs | ReadMe |
|---|---|---|
| **Vioscale score** | 65 (51% (medium)) | 61.9 (73% (medium)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | 44 | - |
| adoption.github_stars | 8,377 | - |
| deployment.options | `{"cloud":true}` | `{"cloud":true}` |
| description.long | A managed documentation platform that connects to Git repositories to automatically build, preview, and host documentation. Handles infrastructure for builds, search, versioning, and authentication so teams can focus on writing documentation. | ReadMe provides a complete documentation platform for building interactive API guides and knowledge bases. Teams can create beautiful docs with markdown, sync with version control systems, add interactive components, and connect with developers through built-in analytics and community features. |
| features.capabilities | `{"kind":"hosted_build","engine":"Sphinx, MkDocs, Docusaurus, and others","search":"built_in","git_sync":true,"analytics":true,"versioning":true,"hosted_offering":true}` | `{"i18n":true,"kind":"hosted_platform","search":"built_in","git_sync":true,"analytics":true,"authoring":"markdown","themeable":true,"versioning":true,"api_reference":true,"self_hostable":false,"hosted_offering":true}` |
| integrations.count | 7 | 13 |
| integrations.list | `[{"name":"GitHub"},{"name":"GitLab"},{"name":"Bitbucket"},{"name":"Google"},{"name":"Sphinx"},{"name":"MkDocs"},{"name":"Docusaurus"}]` | `[{"name":"GitHub"},{"name":"GitLab"},{"name":"Bitbucket"},{"name":"Google Analytics"},{"name":"Intercom"},{"name":"Slack"},{"name":"Zendesk"},{"name":"Statuspage"},{"name":"Segment"},{"name":"Localize"},{"name":"Smartling"},{"name":"Transifex"}]` |
| language.primary | Python | - |
| license.spdx | MIT | - |
| market.availability | `{"primaryMarkets":[],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` | `{"hqCountry":"US","primaryMarkets":[],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` |
| platform.support | `{"web":true}` | `{"web":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"subscription","plans":[{"free":true,"name":"Community","summary":"Free for open source","features":["Clone public repositories","Public documentation","Ads-supported hosting","Automatic builds","Versioning","Search","Pull request previews","CDN hosting"],"description":"For open source and community projects","contactSales":false},{"free":false,"name":"Basic","summary":"$50/month","features":["2 concurrent builds","Shared domain","SSO with GitHub and GitLab","50 redirects","Pageview analytics (30 days)","Search analytics (30 days)","Authentication auditing (30 days)","Private repository support","Documentation authentication","Email support (3 business days)","Automatic builds","Versioning","Search","Pull request previews","CDN hosting"],"commitment":"monthly","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":50,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}],"description":"For small teams getting started with private docs","contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"redirects":"50","custom_domains":"1","concurrent_builds":"2","analytics_retention":"30 days"}},{"free":false,"name":"Advanced","summary":"$150/month","features":["4 concurrent builds","5 custom domains","SSO with GitHub and GitLab","250 redirects","Pageview analytics (90 days)","Search analytics (90 days)","Authentication auditing (90 days)","Private repository support","Documentation authentication","Email support (2 business days)","Automatic builds","Versioning","Search","Pull request previews","CDN hosting"],"commitment":"monthly","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":150,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}],"description":"For hosting public docs at your own domain","contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"redirects":"250","custom_domains":"5","concurrent_builds":"4","analytics_retention":"90 days"}},{"free":false,"name":"Pro","summary":"$250/month","features":["6 concurrent builds","15 custom domains","SSO with Google","500 redirects","Pageview analytics (90 days)","Search analytics (90 days)","Authentication auditing (90 days)","Private repository support","Documentation authentication","Email support (1 business day)","Automatic builds","Versioning","Search","Pull request previews","CDN hosting"],"commitment":"monthly","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":250,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}],"description":"For organizations with scale and security needs","contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"redirects":"500","custom_domains":"15","concurrent_builds":"6","analytics_retention":"90 days"}},{"free":false,"name":"Enterprise","summary":"From $10k/year","features":["SAML SSO","Dedicated builders","Advanced audit tracking","Support SLA"],"commitment":"annual","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":10000,"period":"year","currency":"USD"}],"description":"For organizations with custom requirements","contactSales":true}],"summary":"From $50/month. Free tier for open source. 30-day trial available. Annual billing and purchase orders supported.","currency":"USD","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://readthedocs.org/pricing/","retrievedAt":"2026-08-14T15:27:45.147Z","freeTrialDays":30,"startingPrice":{"amount":50,"period":"month","currency":"USD"},"billingPeriods":["month","year"]}` | `{"type":"subscription","plans":[{"free":true,"name":"Starter","summary":"Free forever","features":["Custom domain","Bi-directional sync","Interactive API reference","Usage metrics","Markdown editor","Customizable themes","AI dropdown","LLMs.txt","MCP server","1 project","1 published version"],"components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":0,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}],"description":"Free plan with core documentation features","contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"projects":"1","versions":"1"}},{"free":false,"name":"Pro","summary":"$250/month billed annually","features":["All Starter features","Invite teammates","Branching and reviews","Notifications","Private docs","Landing page","Changelog, recipes & forums","Custom MDX components","Reusable content","CSS/HTML","Multiple projects","Unlimited versions","Ask AI Lite","Agent Owlbert","AI Linter","GitHub AI Writer"],"commitment":"annual","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":250,"period":"month","currency":"USD"},{"kind":"per_unit","unit":"additional admin","amount":20,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}],"description":"Team collaboration and advanced features","contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"projects":"unlimited"}},{"free":false,"name":"Enterprise","summary":"Custom pricing from $3000/month","features":["All Pro features","Multiple combined projects","No ReadMe branding","User roles & access control","Branch review permissions","Global reusable content library","Audit logs","SSO, OAuth, & more","Dedicated support","Implementation services","Docs Audit","Private AI context","Global lint rules"],"commitment":"annual","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":3000,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}],"description":"Advanced team management and security features","contactSales":true}],"addOns":[{"name":"Ask AI","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":150,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}]},{"name":"Developer Dashboard Extended Logs","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":100,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}]}],"summary":"From free to $250/month (Pro, billed annually) or $3000+/month (Enterprise). Add-ons available.","currency":"USD","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://readme.com/pricing","retrievedAt":"2026-08-14T16:45:12.372Z","startingPrice":{"amount":20,"period":"month","currency":"USD"},"billingPeriods":["month","year"]}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | commercial | freemium |
| pricing.price_level | mid | mid |
| pricing.transparent | yes | yes |
| release.cadence_days | 6 | - |
| release.history | `[{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.08.26","date":"2026-08-26T14:54:05Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.08.26"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.08.18","date":"2026-08-18T15:07:27Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.08.18"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.08.11","date":"2026-08-11T16:05:45Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.08.11"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.08.04","date":"2026-08-04T16:49:45Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.08.04"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.07.28","date":"2026-07-28T14:55:41Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.07.28"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.07.21","date":"2026-07-21T16:14:39Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.07.21"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.07.07","date":"2026-07-07T16:14:18Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.07.07"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.07.01","date":"2026-07-01T19:16:11Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.07.01"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.06.30","date":"2026-06-30T12:19:59Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.06.30"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.06.23","date":"2026-06-23T15:59:57Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.06.23"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.06.16","date":"2026-06-16T14:56:53Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.06.16"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.06.09","date":"2026-06-09T13:12:30Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.06.09"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.06.02post1","date":"2026-06-02T17:19:50Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.06.02post1"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.06.02","date":"2026-06-02T15:45:02Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.06.02"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.05.26","date":"2026-05-26T16:05:37Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.05.26"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.05.05","date":"2026-05-05T15:55:03Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.05.05"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.04.29","date":"2026-04-29T14:19:09Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.04.29"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.04.21","date":"2026-04-21T16:07:26Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.04.21"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.04.14","date":"2026-04-14T08:18:34Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.04.14"},{"url":"https://github.com/readthedocs/readthedocs.org/releases/tag/2026.04.07","date":"2026-04-07T09:53:51Z","type":"stable","version":"2026.04.07"}]` | - |
| reliability.status_page | yes | yes |
| security.disclosure_policy | yes | - |
| security.gdpr | - | yes |
| security.hipaa | - | yes |
| security.scorecard | 7.5 | - |
| security.soc2 | - | yes |

## Capabilities (Documentation Tools)

| Capability | Read the Docs | ReadMe |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Core** |  |  |
| Tool kind | Hosted build service | Hosted platform |
| Engine / language | Sphinx, MkDocs, Docusaurus, and others | - |
| **Authoring** |  |  |
| Authoring format | - | Markdown |
| **API docs** |  |  |
| API reference from OpenAPI / code | - | ✓ |
| **Content** |  |  |
| Multi-version docs | ✓ | ✓ |
| Internationalisation | - | ✓ |
| **Discovery** |  |  |
| Search | Built-in | Built-in |
| **Design** |  |  |
| Theming / custom design | - | ✓ |
| **Workflow** |  |  |
| Edit-in-Git / WYSIWYG round-trip | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Deployment** |  |  |
| Self-hostable | - | ✗ |
| Official managed host | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Insight** |  |  |
| Built-in usage analytics | ✓ | ✓ |

*Source: Vioscale. Generated 2026-09-01T15:02:56.258Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*