head to head · open source
Docker vs jenkins
Docker has 72,113 GitHub stars, 19,233 forks, 3,902 open issues and last shipped yesterday. jenkins has 26,570 stars, 9,832 forks, 3,610 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Docker leads on adoption by 171% (72,113 vs 26,570 stars). Docker is written in Go under Apache-2.0; jenkins is written in Java under MIT. Docker has attracted 27% as many forks as stars, jenkins 37%. Docker 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 | jenkins | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 72K | ★ 27K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Go | Java |
| Last push | 2026-09-19 | 2026-09-19 |
| Forks | ⑂ 19K | ⑂ 9.8K |
| 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 jenkins if
- You want the jenkins feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You evaluated both and jenkins fits your workflow better
About Docker
Docker, published here as the Moby Project, is the open source collection of container toolkit components and the framework for assembling them into custom container based systems, built for engineers, integrators and enthusiasts who want to modify, hack and build on container code rather than buy a commercially supported product.
read the full Docker overview →
About jenkins
Jenkins is an open source automation server built with Java and released under the MIT license. It lives in the continuous integration and continuous delivery ecosystem, where it has served as a central automation hub for roughly sixteen years. The project is developed in the open on GitHub, where it has accumulated 26,546 stars and 9,833 forks, and it is distributed through the official jenkins.io website alongside documentation, plugin listings, and release notes. Two release lines are maintained: a weekly line that carries all new features, improvements, and bug fixes, and a Long Term Support line that receive…
read the full jenkins overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Docker or jenkins more popular?
Docker has 72,113 GitHub stars and jenkins has 26,570. Docker has the larger community by that measure.
Are Docker and jenkins free?
Both are open source. Docker is licensed under Apache-2.0 and jenkins under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Docker and jenkins?
Docker is written in Go and jenkins in Java. 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 jenkins?
Choose Docker if you want the larger community (72,113 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose jenkins if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.