act vs Jenkins
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?
act
Run GitHub Actions workflows locally for fast feedback
VS
Jenkins
Extensible open-source automation server for CI/CD
| Feature | act | Jenkins |
|---|---|---|
| Category | CI/CD & Build | CI/CD & Build |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | Go | Java |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, binary | docker, bare-metal, helm |
| GitHub stars | ★ 71,417 | ★ 26,434 |
| First released | 2019 | 2011 |
| Replaces | GitHub Actions | CircleCI |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is act or Jenkins better?
act is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Jenkins if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are act and Jenkins free and open-source?
Yes. act is licensed under MIT and Jenkins under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run act and Jenkins with Docker?
act: check the project docs for container support. Jenkins: yes.