Forgejo vs OneDev
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted git hosting & forges options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Forgejo
Community-driven self-hosted software forge
VS
OneDev
Self-hosted Git server with CI/CD and kanban
| Feature | Forgejo | OneDev |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Category | Git Hosting & Forges | Git Hosting & Forges |
| License | GPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | Go | Java |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 5,000 | ★ 15,258 |
| First released | 2022 | 2016 |
| Replaces | GitHub, GitLab | GitHub, GitLab |
What are Forgejo and OneDev?
Forgejo
Forgejo is a community-governed fork of Gitea providing a self-hosted Git forge with issues, pull requests, and CI. It targets developers wanting a fully community-controlled code platform. It is deployed via Docker or a single binary.
- Community-governed Gitea fork
- Forgejo Actions CI
- Federation in development
- Lightweight single binary
OneDev
OneDev is a self-hosted Git server with built-in CI/CD, issue tracking, and kanban boards in a single application. It targets small teams wanting an integrated platform without heavy resource use. It is deployed via Docker or a binary.
- Built-in CI/CD engine
- Kanban issue boards
- Code search and review
- Symbol navigation
Forgejo vs OneDev: key differences
Forgejo is written in Go, while OneDev is built with Java. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for Forgejo versus MIT for OneDev. Forgejo is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for OneDev. OneDev is the more established project (first released 2016), while Forgejo arrived in 2022. OneDev has the considerably larger community, at 15,258 GitHub stars versus 5,000.
Why pick each one
Choose Forgejo if…
- Strong community governance
- Lightweight and fast
- Active development
Watch out for
- Smaller ecosystem than Gitea
- Federation still maturing
Choose OneDev if…
- All-in-one in one process
- Strong code navigation
- Lighter than GitLab
Watch out for
- Smaller community
- Java memory footprint
Frequently asked questions
Is Forgejo or OneDev better?
Neither is universally better. OneDev has the larger community, while Forgejo is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Forgejo and OneDev free and open-source?
Yes. Forgejo is licensed under GPL-3.0 and OneDev under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Forgejo and OneDev with Docker?
Forgejo: yes. OneDev: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Forgejo or OneDev?
Forgejo has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for OneDev. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.