head to head · open source
ansible vs compose
ansible has 70,719 GitHub stars, 24,336 forks, 837 open issues and last shipped yesterday. compose has 38,178 stars, 5,818 forks, 111 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. ansible leads on adoption by 85% (70,719 vs 38,178 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.
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Side by side
| ansible | compose | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 71K | ★ 38K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 24K | ⑂ 5.8K |
| 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
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 compose
Docker Compose is an Apache 2.0 licensed Go tool that defines and runs multi container applications on Docker from a single Compose file, aimed at developers and operators who need several containers to start together as one isolated application.
read the full compose overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is ansible or compose more popular?
ansible has 70,719 GitHub stars and compose has 38,178. 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 (70,719 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.