head to head · open source
ansible vs devops-basics
ansible has 70,721 GitHub stars, 24,333 forks, 837 open issues and last shipped yesterday. devops-basics has 1,880 stars, 212 forks, 4 open issues and last shipped 6 days ago. ansible leads on adoption by 3,662% (70,721 vs 1,880 stars). ansible is written in Python under GPL-3.0; devops-basics is written in Shell under Apache-2.0. ansible has attracted 34% as many forks as stars, devops-basics 11%. ansible was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (ansible), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
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 | devops-basics | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 71K | ★ 1.9K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | Shell |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-13 |
| Forks | ⑂ 24K | ⑂ 212 |
| 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 devops-basics if
- You want the devops-basics feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Shell
- You evaluated both and devops-basics 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 devops-basics
DevOps Basics is an Apache 2.0 licensed GitHub repository, primarily Shell, listed under Infrastructure & Operations / Orchestration & Scheduling. It is a practical documentation and hands on place for the DevOps toolchain, covering Docker, Kubernetes, Terraform, Ansible, AWS, Azure, CI, CD, CI/CD, cloud, and devops tools. It is the first of a trio with devops practice and devops project, designed to help users learn, practice, and apply DevOps.
read the full devops-basics overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is ansible or devops-basics more popular?
ansible has 70,721 GitHub stars and devops-basics has 1,880. ansible has the larger community by that measure.
Are ansible and devops-basics free?
Both are open source. ansible is licensed under GPL-3.0 and devops-basics under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between ansible and devops-basics?
ansible is written in Python and devops-basics in Shell. 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 devops-basics?
Choose ansible if you want the larger community (70,721 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose devops-basics if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.