head to head · open source
Docker vs chef
Docker has 72,238 GitHub stars, 19,309 forks, 3,902 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. chef has 8,258 stars, 2,521 forks, 411 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Docker leads on adoption by 775% (72,238 vs 8,258 stars). Docker is written in Go under Apache-2.0; chef is written in Ruby under Apache-2.0. Docker has attracted 27% as many forks as stars, chef 31%. chef 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
| Docker | chef | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 72K | ★ 8.3K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Go | Ruby |
| Last push | 2026-11-03 | 2026-11-04 |
| Forks | ⑂ 19K | ⑂ 2.5K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Docker if
- You weight community size — 72K 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 chef if
- You want the chef feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Ruby
- You evaluated both and chef fits your workflow better
About Docker
The Moby Project ================ Moby is an open source project created by Docker to enable and accelerate software containerization. It provides a "Lego set" of toolkit components, the framework for assembling them into custom container based systems, and a place for all container enthusiasts and professionals to experiment and exchange ideas. Components include container build tools, a container registry, orchestration tools, a runtime and more, and these can be used as building blocks in conjunction with other tools and projects. Principles Moby is an open project guided by strong principles, aiming to be…
read the full Docker overview →
About chef
Chef Infra Umbrella Project : Chef Infra Project State : Active Issues Response Time Maximum : 14 days Pull Request Response Time Maximum : 14 days Getting Started Chef Infra is a configuration management tool designed to bring automation to your entire infrastructure. Want to try Chef Infra? For Chef Infra usage, please refer to Learn Chef, our self paced, entirely free learning platform. Learn Chef also includes module based training for Chef Infra, as well as Chef Automate, Chef Habitat, and Chef InSpec. Other useful resources for Chef Infra users: Documentation: Source: Tickets/Issues: Slack: Chef Community…
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Frequently asked questions
Is Docker or chef more popular?
Docker has 72,238 GitHub stars and chef has 8,258. Docker has the larger community by that measure.
Are Docker and chef free?
Both are open source. Docker is licensed under Apache-2.0 and chef under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Docker and chef?
Docker is written in Go and chef in Ruby. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Docker or chef?
Choose Docker if you want the larger community (72,238 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose chef if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.