GitHub Actions vs Jenkins

Compare GitHub Actions vs Jenkins features, pricing, and performance metrics side-by-side to find the optimal platform for your engineering workflow.

Feature Comparison Matrix

Feature GitHub Actions Jenkins
Hosted Runners ✓ Linux, Windows, macOS runners included ✗ Self-hosted only, no managed runners
Deployment Gate Approvals ✓ Environment protection rules with required reviewers ✓ Input step, pipeline approvals via plugins
Self-Hosted Runners ✓ Self-hosted runners supported on all plans ✓ Master/agent architecture
Docker/Kubernetes Support ✓ Docker container support, native K8s deploy actions ✓ Via plugins, Docker Pipeline plugin
Matrix Builds ✓ Matrix strategy for OS and version combinations ✗ Limited, requires Matrix Project Plugin
Pipeline as Code ✓ YAML-based .github/workflows ✓ Jenkinsfile declarative and scripted pipeline
Marketplace/Plugins ✓ Marketplace with 20,000+ actions ✓ 1800+ plugins in Update Center
Parallel Execution ✓ Parallel jobs with matrix strategy ✓ Parallel stages in declarative pipeline
Cache Management ✓ Built-in caching with cache actions ✗ Requires plugins or manual setup
Secrets Management ✓ Encrypted secrets with environment-level scoping ✓ Credentials binding plugin, built-in encryption
Get Started Deploy GitHub Actions Deploy Jenkins

About GitHub Actions

GitHub Actions is a CI/CD platform integrated directly into GitHub repositories. It allows developers to automate software workflows with YAML-based configuration, supporting any language or cloud provider. With a massive marketplace of pre-built actions and seamless GitHub integration, it is one of the most popular CI/CD choices for teams already on GitHub. It offers both GitHub-hosted and self-hosted runners, matrix builds, and fine-grained access control.

Explore GitHub Actions

About Jenkins

Jenkins is the most widely used open-source automation server, providing hundreds of plugins to support building, deploying, and automating any project. As a self-hosted solution, it offers complete control over the CI/CD pipeline infrastructure. Its plugin ecosystem is unparalleled, with integrations for virtually every tool in the DevOps landscape. Jenkins supports Pipeline as Code through Jenkinsfile, distributed builds with master/agent architecture, and extensive API access.

Explore Jenkins

Related Links

Platform Profiles

GitHub Actions

Jenkins

GitHub Actions Alternatives

Jenkins Alternatives

Best For

Home