Spinnaker vs Woodpecker CI
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?
Spinnaker
Multi-cloud continuous delivery platform
VS
Woodpecker CI
Simple, container-native continuous integration
| Feature | Spinnaker | Woodpecker CI |
|---|---|---|
| Category | CI/CD & Build | CI/CD & Build |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Java | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 4,096 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | kubernetes, helm | docker, kubernetes |
| GitHub stars | ★ 9,762 | ★ 7,650 |
| First released | 2015 | 2019 |
| Replaces | Harness | Jenkins, CircleCI |
Why pick each one
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 Spinnaker or Woodpecker CI better?
Neither is universally better. Spinnaker has the larger community, while Woodpecker CI is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Spinnaker and Woodpecker CI free and open-source?
Yes. Spinnaker is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Woodpecker CI under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Spinnaker and Woodpecker CI with Docker?
Spinnaker: check the project docs for container support. Woodpecker CI: yes.