Homebrew
A package manager for installing software across multiple operating systems
- Also known as
- homebrew
What is Homebrew?
An open-source package manager that helps users install and manage software packages on macOS and Linux.
Homebrew pricing
We don't have Homebrew's full plan breakdown yet (its pricing page resisted automated reading). Here's what we could confirm. Always check live pricing for exact numbers.
Free and open-source
What Homebrew does
The capabilities that matter for package registries, normalised so it lines up with every alternative. “-” means we haven't confirmed it, not that it's missing.
- Role
- Public registry
- Ecosystem / language
- OS-level
- Deployment
- CLI-local
- Package formats supported
- Many formats
- Private / scoped packages
- ✓
- Upstream proxy / caching
- -
- Lockfile / deterministic installs
- -
- Workspaces / monorepo
- -
- Content-addressable store
- ✓
- Supply-chain integrity
- ✓
- Vulnerability / licence scanning
- ✓
- Openness
- Open-source
- Pricing model
- Free / OSS
Platform & deployment
Independently observed- CLI
- macOS
- Linux
- Self-hosted
Security & compliance
Known vulnerabilities: 0 (0 in the last 12 months) sourcea count reflects scale & disclosure, not quality
Homebrew FAQ
Common questions about Homebrew, answered from independent, dated evidence.
What is Homebrew?
Homebrew is a package manager that installs command-line tools, libraries, and applications from upstream source code. It organizes each package in an isolated directory and uses symlinks to integrate them into your system. It is indexed under Package Registries.
Source: https://brew.sh
Is Homebrew free?
Homebrew offers a free tier, so you can start without paying. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.
Source: https://brew.sh
What platforms does Homebrew support?
Homebrew supports macOS, Linux and a command-line interface. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.
Source: https://brew.sh
Can Homebrew be self-hosted?
Yes. Homebrew can be deployed self-hosted, so it does not have to run on the vendor's infrastructure.
Source: https://brew.sh
Is Homebrew open source?
Yes. Homebrew is published under the BSD-2-Clause licence, a permissive licence that generally allows commercial use and modification. Licence terms can change between releases, so verify against the repository for the version you intend to use.
Source: https://github.com/Homebrew/brew
Homebrew alternatives
Other package registries we track, ranked by the same independent score.
- BunA unified JavaScript runtime with integrated package management, bundling, and testingmedium · 56%
- pnpmmedium · 65%
- VerdaccioA self-hosted npm registry with package caching and proxying capabilitieshigh · 78%
- RubyGemsThe public repository and package manager for Ruby codelow · 31%
- uvmedium · 62%
- pipPackage installer for Pythonmedium · 68%
Compare Homebrew
Side by side against other package registries, attribute by attribute, with a source on every value.
The vioscaleAI score: one lens on the evidence
Not user reviews and not a paid placement: a confidence-weighted blend of the independent signals below (adoption, activity, security posture, and more), which you can sort and re-weight yourself. Vendors can correct their listing but can never move their rank, and stars are weighted low as a vanity metric. It is one way to read the evidence for Homebrew, not the verdict.
| Signal | Score | Weight | Contribution | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Development activity | 63 | 0.11 | 6.8 | ✓ |
| Release cadence | 98 | 0.07 | 6.7 | ✓ |
| Capabilities | 67 | 0.09 | 5.9 | ✓ |
| Security score | 59 | 0.08 | 4.8 | ✓ |
| Stars | 89 | 0.03 | 2.4 | ✓ |
| Integrations | 0 | 0.05 | 0.0 | - |
| Dependent projects | 0 | 0.07 | 0.0 | ✓ |
| Security posture | 5 | 0.18 | 0.0 | - |
| Package downloads | 0 | 0.15 | 0.0 | - |
| Developer Q&A activity | 0 | 0.05 | 0.0 | - |
Computed . Re-weight it by intent, or see the full method.
All data & sourcesshow ↓
Every value we hold, with its source, retrieval date, and confidence. This is the evidence behind the score: don't trust it, verify it.
Activity
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Commits last 30d | 100 | mediumsource · 2026-09-11 · 65% |
Adoption
Content
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Faq | 5 items | mediumsource · 2026-09-10 · 67% |
Features
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Capabilities | Role: public_registry · Ecosystem: os · Deployment: cli_local · Open source: oss · Pricing model: free · Package formats: multi | mediumsource · 2026-09-14 · 60% |
Language
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Primary | Ruby | highsource · 2026-09-11 · 90% |
License
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Spdx | BSD-2-Clause | highsource · 2026-09-11 · 95% |
Pricing
Release
Reliability
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Status page | Yes | mediumsource · 2026-08-01 · 60% |
Security
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Disclosure policy | Yes | mediumsource · 2026-08-14 · 60% |
| Scorecard | 5.9 | highsource · 2026-09-11 · 90% |
| Vulnerabilities | Count: 0 · Source: https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=go&package_name=github.com%2Fhomebrew%2Fbrew&per_page=100 · Last 12m: 0 | highsource · 2026-09-11 · 90% |
Is Homebrew the right choice for you?
Tell us the job, the constraints and what you weigh most, and we will rank Homebrew against the rest of the package registries we index, using the same dated evidence weighted your way.
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