head to head · open source
ansible vs Mage
ansible has 71,204 GitHub stars, 24,474 forks, 837 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Mage has 8,840 stars, 994 forks, 624 open issues and last shipped 11 days ago. ansible leads on adoption by 705% (71,204 vs 8,840 stars). ansible is written in Python under GPL-3.0; Mage is written in Python under Apache-2.0. ansible has attracted 34% as many forks as stars, Mage 11%. 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 | Mage | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 71K | ★ 8.8K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | Python |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-10-23 |
| Forks | ⑂ 24K | ⑂ 994 |
| 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 Mage if
- You want the Mage feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and Mage fits your workflow better
About ansible
[ ][copying] Ansible Ansible is a radically simple IT automation system. It handles configuration management, application deployment, cloud provisioning, ad hoc task execution, network automation, and multi node orchestration. Ansible makes complex changes like zero downtime rolling updates with load balancers easy. More information on the Ansible website. Design Principles Have an extremely simple setup process with a minimal learning curve. Manage machines quickly and in parallel. Avoid custom agents and additional open ports, be agentless by leveraging the existing SSH daemon. Describe infrastructure in a…
read the full ansible overview →
About Mage
Mage OSS Build modern data pipelines locally — fast, visual, and production ready. Mage OSS is a self hosted development environment designed to help teams create production grade data pipelines with confidence. Ideal for automating ETL tasks, architecting data flow, or orchestrating transformations — all in a fast, notebook style interface powered by modular code. When it’s time to scale, Mage Pro — our core platform — unlocks enterprise orchestration, collaboration, and AI powered workflows. What you can do with Mage OSS Build pipelines locally with Python, SQL, or R in a modular notebook style UI Run jobs…
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Frequently asked questions
Is ansible or Mage more popular?
ansible has 71,204 GitHub stars and Mage has 8,840. ansible has the larger community by that measure.
Are ansible and Mage free?
Both are open source. ansible is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Mage under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between ansible and Mage?
ansible is written in Python and Mage in Python. 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 Mage?
Choose ansible if you want the larger community (71,204 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Mage if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.