head to head · open source
Docker vs pytest-testinfra
Docker has 72,238 GitHub stars, 19,309 forks, 3,902 open issues and last shipped yesterday. pytest-testinfra has 2,480 stars, 358 forks, 147 open issues and last shipped 4 months ago. Docker leads on adoption by 2,813% (72,238 vs 2,480 stars). Docker is written in Go under Apache-2.0; pytest-testinfra is written in Python under Apache-2.0. Docker has attracted 27% as many forks as stars, pytest-testinfra 14%. Docker was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (docker), 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
| Docker | pytest-testinfra | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 72K | ★ 2.5K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Go | Python |
| Last push | 2026-11-03 | 2026-07-20 |
| Forks | ⑂ 19K | ⑂ 358 |
| 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 pytest-testinfra if
- You want the pytest-testinfra 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 pytest-testinfra 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 pytest-testinfra
Testinfra test your infrastructure Latest documentation: .. important:: Maintenance Notice This project is currently not actively maintained , and responses to issues or pull requests may be delayed for several months . Please consider this when using the project and feel free to contribute via pull requests, which will be reviewed as time permits. Thank you for your understanding! About ===== With Testinfra you can write unit tests in Python to test actual state of your servers configured by management tools like Salt , Ansible , Puppet , Chef and so on. Testinfra aims to be a Serverspec equivalent in python…
read the full pytest-testinfra overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Docker or pytest-testinfra more popular?
Docker has 72,238 GitHub stars and pytest-testinfra has 2,480. Docker has the larger community by that measure.
Are Docker and pytest-testinfra free?
Both are open source. Docker is licensed under Apache-2.0 and pytest-testinfra under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Docker and pytest-testinfra?
Docker is written in Go and pytest-testinfra 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, Docker or pytest-testinfra?
Choose Docker if you want the larger community (72,238 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose pytest-testinfra if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.