head to head · open source
ansible vs compose
ansible has 71,204 GitHub stars, 24,474 forks, 837 open issues and last shipped yesterday. compose has 38,573 stars, 5,899 forks, 111 open issues and last shipped yesterday. ansible leads on adoption by 85% (71,204 vs 38,573 stars). ansible is written in Python under GPL-3.0; compose is written in Go under Apache-2.0. ansible has attracted 34% as many forks as stars, compose 15%. 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.
← all 20902 open source comparisons
Side by side
| ansible | compose | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 71K | ★ 39K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | Go |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 24K | ⑂ 5.9K |
| 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 compose if
- You want the compose feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and compose 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 compose
Table of Contents Docker Compose Where to get Docker Compose + Windows and macOS + Linux Quick Start Contributing Legacy Docker Compose Docker Compose is a tool for running multi container applications on Docker defined using the Compose file format. A Compose file is used to define how one or more containers that make up your application are configured. Once you have a Compose file, you can create and start your application with a single command: docker compose up . Note : About Docker Swarm Docker Swarm used to rely on the legacy compose file format but did not adopt the compose specification so is missing…
read the full compose overview →
More in Infrastructure & Operations
Related comparisons
More Orchestration & Scheduling projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the Orchestration & Scheduling field.
Frequently asked questions
Is ansible or compose more popular?
ansible has 71,204 GitHub stars and compose has 38,573. ansible has the larger community by that measure.
Are ansible and compose free?
Both are open source. ansible is licensed under GPL-3.0 and compose under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between ansible and compose?
ansible is written in Python and compose 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 compose?
Choose ansible if you want the larger community (71,204 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose compose if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.