Best GitHub Alternatives to Use for Self Hosting
Can you call yourself a developer if you have not heard of GitHub? Probably not. 😜
Github is a platform for source code management and distributed version control of the code. Developers use it for hosting code centrally and accessing it from anywhere in the world.
While Github allows you to store any number of public code repositories for free, you will need to pay subscription fees for private repositories. Moreover, you may need to use a VCS that GitHub does not support.
Read on this article that will discuss GitHub alternatives.
1. GitLab
If you are looking for an alternative to GitHub, GitLab is a pretty popular option. GitLab is an open-source platform that will help you in every stage of the DevOps cycle, including planning, software release, and tool monitoring.
Now, you can ensure timely software delivery and better team collaboration all from a single platform. Using its branching system, developers can easily test, design, and manage the codes they create. DevOps teams can keep everyone on track with the robust planning tools of GitLab.
To deploy GitLab, you can weather use an in-house server or use the SaaS hosting facility of GitHub. It also offers features like Issue-tracking and wiki, that teams will find to be highly beneficial.
Pricing: Free for individual users, subscription for teams starts from $19/user/month.
2. AWS CodeCommit
For organizations already using any of the AWS services, AWS CodeCommit is a perfect choice. It is a Git-based source control service offered by Amazon. If you are looking to expand your service in the future, its scalable cloud storage and no size restrictions will come in handy.
On this GitHub alternative, you can create unlimited respiratory and ensure seamless access through powerful integrations. Besides being ideal for collaborative tool development, this tool also supports importing and exporting files by HTTPS or SSH.
Pricing: Free for the first 5 active users. Any additional active user $1/user/month.
3. BitBucket
Bitbucket is a Git-based repository system developed by Atlassian, hence this version control tool gets easily integrated with other Atlassian products such as Jira and Trello. If your development team uses any Atlassian tools, using it as the GitHub alternative will streamline the collaboration and integration.
Moreover, you can easily integrate this tool with Slack and HipChat. To ensure maximum security to your code and workflow, it offers Soc 2 Type II security as well as two-factor authentication. BitBucket lets the developers develop their own integrations for this tool to make it more flexible.
This alternative to GitHub allows you to import your repositories from GitHub to BitBucket easily. All in all, this is a perfect tool for collaborative coding, testing, and deployment.
Pricing: Forever free for 5 users. Plans starts from $3/user/month.
4. Cloud Source Repositories
This is a SaaS private Git repository tool, where developers can design, develop, and manage their code securely. Being developed by Google, it is considered a top alternative to GitHub. Here, you can store an unlimited number of private Git repositories.
It also comes with a powerful code search feature that lets you find what you want in a few minutes. The built-in Cloud Diagnostics of Cloud Source Repositories is capable of tracking issues early.
Pricing: Free for up to 5 users and 50 GB of storage.
5. Beanstalk
Beanstalk is another alternative to GitHub, which is secure and reliable at the same time. Besides managing source code repositories, it allows you to accurately deploy code. Its design can help you significantly improve your development workflow.
Beanstalk also supports Git and SVN hosting, as well as tailored deployment configurations for different environments.
Pricing: Private users can get a free account for 1 repository. Paid subscriptions start at $15/month.
6. Gogs
If you are looking for the GitHub alternative that offers the easiest and fastest installation, nothing can beat Gogs. Its version control tool lets you distribute independent binaries across various platforms such as Windows, Linux, Mac, and Raspberry Pi.
Since Gogs is lightweight and fast, it doesn’t provide you with all the features of expensive enterprise-level self-hosting platforms. However, you do get to enjoy wiki, version control, bug tracking, and many other features.
Pricing: Being a 100% open-source platform, developers can use Gogs free of cost.
7. Apache Allura
Allura is an open-source GitHub alternative from the house of Apache. Developers can use this Python-based platform for source code repository management. However, it does not support code verification.
This platform offers features, like markdown formatting, file attachments, and issue tickets with milestones for issue tracking. You can also save common search queries in its advanced search syntax. You can also use Apache Allura for wiki pages, discussions, blogs, and bug reports.
8. Trac
DevOps teams looking for a minimalistic GitHub alternative should go for Trac without any second thought. This lightweight tool supports SaaS software project management for the established and development process.
To facilitate version control features, this platform uses Git and Subversion. However, it is also compatible with other tools like Mercurial and Perforce. Moreover, Trac comes with a robust wiki and issue-tracking system that developers can leverage for their projects.
If your team monitors project progress regularly, its reporting functionality will be of great help.
9. Visual Studio Team Services
Using the Visual Studio Team Services (VSTS) of Microsoft, developers can collaborate, save, assess, and deploy their code. Apart from these, this GitHub alternative tool can assist you with numerous other development tasks. You can use its Kanban board for planning agile processes.
Moreover, this platform offers a testing and deployment infrastructure and supports package sharing. As a Microsoft product, this tool gets regularly updated, while its users can enjoy 24/7 support and guaranteed uptime.
10. GitKraken
GitKraken is a hosting platform mainly popular for its simple interface, easy Git operation, and speed. Developers can instantly revise any error using its undo button and thus, streamlining the workload. It also supports Git integration with Jira.
Pricing: Non-profit organizations and companies with less than 20 employees can use it for free.
Wrapping Up the Discussion
GitHub is a widely used code hosting tool by developers for version control. While it enjoys high popularity, you may want to look for a GitHub alternative for various reasons.
This article contains a curated list of Source Code Repository Tools that you can use as alternatives to Github. Here, you will find out about open-source tools, as well as commercial platforms.
Before opting for any of these, you should try its free plan or free trial. If you are about to choose a tool for an entire team, it is better to ask your teammates about the platform of their choice.
