head to head · open source
ansible vs Dagu
ansible has 70,721 GitHub stars, 24,333 forks, 837 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Dagu has 4,029 stars, 337 forks, 67 open issues and last shipped yesterday. ansible leads on adoption by 1,655% (70,721 vs 4,029 stars). ansible is written in Python under GPL-3.0; Dagu is written in Go under GPL-3.0. ansible has attracted 34% as many forks as stars, Dagu 8%. ansible was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| ansible | Dagu | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 71K | ★ 4.0K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Python | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-18 |
| Forks | ⑂ 24K | ⑂ 337 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick ansible if
- You weight community size — 71K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Dagu if
- You want the Dagu feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and Dagu fits your workflow better
About ansible
Ansible is a radically simple, agentless IT automation platform, written in Python and licensed under GPL 3.0, that handles configuration management, application deployment, cloud provisioning, ad hoc task execution, network automation, and multi node orchestration for operators, developers, and network and cloud teams who manage machines over plain SSH.
read the full ansible overview →
About Dagu
Dagu is local first workflow engine. It targets operations and internal automation. It lives in Infrastructure & Operations / Orchestration & Scheduling. It is Go project under GPL 3.0. It provides single binary with built in Web UI. It needs no external database or message broker. It runs on Linux, macOS, Windows. GitHub metadata lists 3982 stars, 332 forks, 0 contributors, 67 open issues, repo age 0 years, last push 2026 09 14.
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Frequently asked questions
Is ansible or Dagu more popular?
ansible has 70,721 GitHub stars and Dagu has 4,029. ansible has the larger community by that measure.
Are ansible and Dagu free?
Both are open source. ansible is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Dagu under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between ansible and Dagu?
ansible is written in Python and Dagu in Go. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, ansible or Dagu?
Choose ansible if you want the larger community (70,721 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Dagu if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.