Best Alternatives to GitHub

Working as a team in a software development is so much fun. But, it can also be challenging. You and your team need an appropriate tool in order to make the development going smoothly. Today, GitHub becomes app developers’s favorite tool to get collaborate. GitHub is a web-based Git that makes developers jobs become much easier. In particular, GitHub becomes a favorite tool of open source developers since GitHub is free for public and open source projects.

Even so, GitHub is the only source code management (SCM) tool out there. There several similar tools you can use to manage the source code of your project.

I am not sure what is your problem with GitHub. But, if you need similar tool to manage the source code of the project you and you team are currently working on, here are some GittHub alternatives you can consider.

1. Bitbucket

One of the reasons why you want to switch away from GitHub is probably because you want to create a private project, while, on the other hand, you don’t want to upgrade your account. GitHub is no doubt the best SCM for open source and public projects. However, free version of GitHub doesn’t allow you to create any private project, at all. Bitbucket, on the other hand, allows you to create private projects with your free account. You can also add up to 5 members to work with.

Speaking of features, Bitbucket is not far different to GitHub. Key features like pull requests and branch permissions are offered by Bitbucket. Additionally, this tool also supports a wide range of integrations. Including Jira and Trello. The fact, Bitbucket is owned by Atlassian, a company behind Jira and Trello.

2. GitLab

GitLab is probably the best tool you can use to develop a software with your team. You can use this tool whether on your own server or GitLab’s. GitLab is a great tool for software maker companies who need a comprehensive tool for their distributed teams. GitLab is more than just a source code management. It’s a collaboration tool. Small app developers can also take advantage of GitLab since it allows you to create private projects. You are also allowed to add as many team members as you want, without any limitation.

GitLab consists of three versions, Community Edition, Enterprise Edition Starter, and Enterprise Edition Premium. Each version can has different features. Before choosing a certain edition, understand your needs first. Visit here to learn more about GitLab features.

3. Beanstalk

Beanstalk tends to ideal for app developers who want to commercialize the app they are developing. There is no special treatment for open source developers offered by this tool like GitHub and GitLab do. Since Beanstalk is aimed at commercial-oriented projects, you will see no free plan for your team. The cheapest plan, which called BRONZE, allows you to add 10 repositories. This plan allows you to work with 5 team members. Compared to GitHub, the price is far more expensive. But, you will probably find some features in Beanstalk that don’t offered by GitHub. Again, understanding your needs is the key before choosing a software development tool.

Beanstalk itself has been around since 2007. This tool is run by Wildbit, Philadelphia based software company. The aim of Beanstalk is to remove the hassle from hosting code and managing deployments, allowing teams to focus on writing amazing software instead.

4. SourceForge

When searching for free software on Google chances are you once directed to SourceForge to download the software you want. While regular users know SourceForge as a place to download software, developers can take advantage of it in the software development process. From hosting the code, creating documentations and so on. SourceForge is also aimed at open source developers.

When you are creating a new project in SourceForge you can choose the tools you need on the development such as Git, Wiki, Tickets, Forums and so on. SourceForge also makes it possible if you want to import a project from GitHub. SourceForge is quite similar to GitHub and GitLab. It is an open platform. SourceForge runs on Allura. You can download Allura for free to build your own SourceForge.

5. Google Cloud Source Repositories

Google Cloud Source Repositories is a software development tool offered by the internet giant Google. It is a part of Google Cloud Platform. This tool provides Git version control to support collaborative development of any application or service, including those that run on Google App Engine and Google Compute Engine. Google Cloud Source Repositories allows you to have any number of private Git repositories. You can also organize the code associated with your cloud project in whatever way works best for you. Several features offered by Google Cloud Source Sepositories include Stackdriver Debugger, Source Browser, Reliable Storage and so on.

6. FogBugz Dev Hub

FogBugz Dev Hub is a GitHub alternative that more suited for software developers who want to create a commercial project. This tool is quite similar to Beanstalk. No free plan is offered. Key features offered by FogBugz Dev Hub include See Code Changes that allows you to monitor updates across projects, Projects & Repos to organize repos & branches and Search Your Code to ease you in searching changesets, files, and code. Additionally, FogBugz also offers optional add-ons to enhance its functionalities such as Time Tracking and Wiki.