Bamboo vs Spinnaker
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted ci/cd & build options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
| Feature | Bamboo | Spinnaker |
|---|---|---|
| Category | CI/CD & Build | CI/CD & Build |
| License | ⊘ Proprietary | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Java | Java |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 4,096 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal | kubernetes, helm |
| GitHub stars | — | ★ 9,762 |
| First released | 2020 | 2015 |
| Replaces | — | Harness |
Why pick each one
Choose Bamboo if…
- Released under the ⊘ Proprietary license
- Written in Java
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Choose Spinnaker if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
- Mature project with 9.8k GitHub stars
- Written in Java
Frequently asked questions
Is Bamboo or Spinnaker better?
Neither is universally better. Spinnaker has the larger community, while Bamboo is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Bamboo and Spinnaker free and open-source?
Yes. Bamboo is licensed under ⊘ Proprietary and Spinnaker under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Bamboo and Spinnaker with Docker?
Bamboo: check the project docs for container support. Spinnaker: check the project docs for container support.