# Read the Docs vs Sphinx

| Attribute | Read the Docs | Sphinx |
|---|---|---|
| **Vioscale score** | 65 (51% (medium)) | 68.9 (71% (medium)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | 44 | 2 |
| adoption.dependent_repos | - | 68,751 |
| adoption.github_stars | 8,377 | 7,989 |
| adoption.package_downloads_weekly | - | 15,422,418 |
| deployment.options | `{"cloud":true}` | `{"self_hosted":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. | Converts reStructuredText and Markdown into multiple output formats including HTML, PDF, and ePub, with support for automatic API documentation, customizable themes, and internationalization. |
| 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":"static_generator","engine":"Python","themeable":true,"api_reference":true,"self_hostable":true,"hosted_offering":false}` |
| integrations.count | 7 | - |
| integrations.list | `[{"name":"GitHub"},{"name":"GitLab"},{"name":"Bitbucket"},{"name":"Google"},{"name":"Sphinx"},{"name":"MkDocs"},{"name":"Docusaurus"}]` | - |
| language.primary | Python | Python |
| license.spdx | MIT | - |
| market.availability | `{"primaryMarkets":[],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` | - |
| platform.support | `{"web":true}` | `{"cli":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":"open_source","sourceUrl":"https://www.sphinx-doc.org","retrievedAt":"2026-08-14T15:27:10.554Z"}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | commercial | open_source |
| pricing.price_level | mid | free |
| pricing.transparent | yes | yes |
| release.cadence_days | 6 | 1 |
| 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"}]` | `[{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v9.1.0","date":"2025-12-31T15:08:45Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.1.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v9.1.0rc2","date":"2025-12-27T03:17:14Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v9.1.0rc2"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v9.1.0rc1","date":"2025-12-19T23:30:08Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v9.1.0rc1"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v9.0.4","date":"2025-12-04T07:46:04Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.0.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v9.0.3","date":"2025-12-04T01:46:38Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.0.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v9.0.2","date":"2025-12-03T23:03:33Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.0.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v9.0.1","date":"2025-12-01T16:43:08Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.0.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v9.0.0","date":"2025-11-30T12:41:22Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.0.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v9.0.0rc4","date":"2025-11-30T06:18:15Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v9.0.0rc4"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v9.0.0rc3","date":"2025-11-30T03:03:03Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v9.0.0rc3"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v9.0.0rc2","date":"2025-11-29T02:44:03Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v9.0.0rc2"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v9.0.0rc1","date":"2025-11-28T00:47:08Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v9.0.0rc1"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v8.2.3","date":"2025-03-02T22:31:26Z","type":"stable","version":"v8.2.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v8.2.2","date":"2025-03-02T21:01:13Z","type":"stable","version":"v8.2.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v8.2.1","date":"2025-02-21T23:29:16Z","type":"stable","version":"v8.2.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v8.2.0","date":"2025-02-18T19:52:45Z","type":"stable","version":"v8.2.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v8.2.0rc2","date":"2025-02-18T00:39:02Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v8.2.0rc2"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v8.2.0rc1","date":"2025-02-16T05:41:49Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v8.2.0rc1"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v8.1.3","date":"2024-10-13T20:26:47Z","type":"stable","version":"v8.1.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/releases/tag/v8.1.2","date":"2024-10-12T18:44:16Z","type":"stable","version":"v8.1.2"}]` |
| reliability.status_page | yes | - |
| security.disclosure_policy | yes | - |
| security.scorecard | 7.5 | 5.5 |
| security.vulnerabilities | - | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=pypi&package_name=sphinx&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` |

## Capabilities (Documentation Tools)

| Capability | Read the Docs | Sphinx |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Core** |  |  |
| Tool kind | Hosted build service | Static-site generator |
| Engine / language | Sphinx, MkDocs, Docusaurus, and others | Python |
| **Authoring** |  |  |
| Authoring format | - | - |
| **API docs** |  |  |
| API reference from OpenAPI / code | - | ✓ |
| **Content** |  |  |
| Multi-version docs | ✓ | - |
| Internationalisation | - | ✓ |
| **Discovery** |  |  |
| Search | 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 2026-09-01T14:33:01.726Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*