head to head · open source
compose vs werf
compose has 38,573 GitHub stars, 5,899 forks, 111 open issues and last shipped yesterday. werf has 4,739 stars, 243 forks, 30 open issues and last shipped yesterday. compose leads on adoption by 714% (38,573 vs 4,739 stars). compose is written in Go under Apache-2.0; werf is written in Go under Apache-2.0. compose has attracted 15% as many forks as stars, werf 5%. compose was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (docker, golang), 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
| compose | werf | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 39K | ★ 4.7K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Go | Go |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.9K | ⑂ 243 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick compose if
- You weight community size — 39K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick werf if
- You want the werf 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 werf fits your workflow better
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 →
About werf
werf is a CNCF Sandbox CLI tool to implement full cycle CI/CD to Kubernetes easily. werf integrates into your CI system and leverages familiar and reliable technologies, such as Git, Dockerfile, Helm, and Buildah. What makes werf special: Complete application lifecycle management : build and publish container images, test, deploy an application to Kubernetes, distribute release artifacts and clean up the container registry. Ease of use : use Dockerfiles and Helm chart for configuration and let werf handle all the rest. Advanced features : automatic build caching and content based tagging, enhanced resource…
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Frequently asked questions
Is compose or werf more popular?
compose has 38,573 GitHub stars and werf has 4,739. compose has the larger community by that measure.
Are compose and werf free?
Both are open source. compose is licensed under Apache-2.0 and werf under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between compose and werf?
compose is written in Go and werf 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, compose or werf?
Choose compose if you want the larger community (38,573 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose werf if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.