GitHub vs Gitea (2026)

Overview

GitHub and Gitea are web‑based platforms for hosting Git repositories, managing pull requests, and tracking issues. This comparison helps development teams decide whether to stay on GitHub’s cloud service or move to a self‑hosted, open‑source alternative. The core use case is source‑code collaboration; teams switch primarily to gain full data ownership or to cut recurring subscription fees.

Key Differences

• Cost: GitHub charges $7 – $21 per user per month; Gitea is free software (only server‑hosting costs).
• Data ownership: GitHub stores data on its SaaS platform; Gitea lets you keep all repositories and metadata on premises.
• Setup complexity: GitHub is ready‑to‑use after sign‑up; Gitea requires provisioning a server, configuring a database, and maintaining updates.
• Scalability: GitHub scales automatically to millions of users; Gitea’s scalability depends on your own infrastructure and may need load‑balancing for large fleets.
• Feature/integration difference: GitHub offers native CodeQL security scanning and advanced CI via GitHub Actions; Gitea provides basic CI integration through external tools (e.g., Drone, Woodpecker) but lacks built‑in advanced code analysis.

Pricing Comparison

Pros and Cons

GitHub

• Pros

- Massive ecosystem of apps, actions, and integrations. - Enterprise‑grade security, compliance, and SSO support. - Automatic high‑availability and global CDN. - Powerful built‑in code scanning (CodeQL) and secret detection. - Extensive community support and documentation.

• Cons

- Recurring subscription cost scales linearly with headcount. - Limited control over data residency and retention policies. - Vendor lock‑in for advanced features (e.g., GitHub Packages). - Customizations beyond provided APIs require GitHub Enterprise. - Pricing tiers can be confusing for mixed‑role teams.

Gitea

• Pros

- Completely free and open‑source under the MIT license. - Full control of data, hosting environment, and backup strategy. - Lightweight footprint; can run on a single low‑cost VM or Raspberry Pi. - Simple UI with built‑in LDAP/AD authentication. - Easy to extend via plugins and webhooks.

• Cons

- No native advanced CI/CD; relies on external tools. - Limited built‑in security analysis (no CodeQL equivalent). - Community support is smaller; enterprise‑level SLAs are absent. - Scaling beyond a few hundred users requires manual load‑balancing. - Feature set lags behind GitHub’s newest releases.

When to Choose Each

GitHub is ideal for organizations that need a zero‑maintenance, globally available platform with deep integration into the broader GitHub ecosystem (Actions, Packages, Advanced Security). It serves teams of any size that prioritize rapid onboarding, compliance certifications, and built‑in CI/CD pipelines over total cost control.

Gitea fits small‑to‑medium teams (10‑200 developers) that require full data sovereignty, have existing on‑prem infrastructure, and can allocate a DevOps resource for server upkeep. It is also a strong choice for startups or hobby projects where subscription fees would be a disproportionate expense.

Migration Path

1. Export repositories – Clone each GitHub repo locally (git clone --mirror ) or download the archive (.zip/.tar.gz).
2. Set up Gitea – Deploy Gitea on a server (Docker, binary, or package) and configure the database, SMTP, and authentication.
3. Import repos – Use Gitea’s “Migrate Repository” UI or CLI (gitea admin migrate) and point to the cloned mirrors or remote URLs.
4. Migrate issues & pull requests – Generate a GitHub export via the API (gh api -X GET /repos/:owner/:repo/issues --paginate > issues.json) and import with Gitea’s gitea dump/gitea import tools or third‑party scripts (e.g., github-issues-to-gitea).

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Our Take

Gitea has matured into a production‑ready, self‑hosted Git service that can comfortably support most development workflows for small‑to‑medium teams. Its lightweight architecture, MIT licensing, and straightforward installation make it a viable alternative to GitHub when data control and cost are top priorities. The core features—repository hosting, pull‑request workflow, basic issue tracking, and LDAP/SSO—are stable and receive regular community updates.

A notable technical limitation is the absence of an integrated, first‑class CI/CD engine comparable to GitHub Actions. Teams must provision an external runner (e.g., Drone, Woodpecker, Jenkins) and maintain additional pipelines, which adds operational overhead and can fragment the developer experience. For organizations that rely heavily on automated security scans, codeQL, or complex workflow orchestration, this gap may be a deal‑breaker.

Recommendation: Switch to Gitea if you have ≤ 200 developers, already operate on‑prem infrastructure, and can live without built‑in advanced CI/CD and code‑analysis tools. Stay on GitHub if you need enterprise‑grade compliance, deep marketplace integrations, or a fully managed CI/CD pipeline that scales without extra ops effort.

Who Should Switch

• Startups with ≤ 30 engineers that want to eliminate subscription fees.
• Companies with strict data‑residency requirements (e.g., EU‑based GDPR constraints).
• Teams already running internal CI/CD (Drone, Jenkins) and don’t need GitHub Actions.
• Open‑source projects that prefer a free, community‑driven host and can provide a donation‑funded server.
• Organizations with an existing on‑prem Linux server pool and a dedicated DevOps engineer.

FAQ

How do I migrate my GitHub issues to Gitea?

Use the GitHub API to export issues as JSON (gh api -X GET /repos/:owner/:repo/issues --paginate > issues.json) and then import them with Gitea’s gitea import command or a community script. Direct one‑click migration is not built into Gitea.

Does Gitea support GitHub Actions workflows?

No. Gitea does not have a native workflow engine. You must connect an external CI system (e.g., Drone, Woodpecker) and recreate the pipelines manually.

Can I use Gitea with SAML or Azure AD for single sign‑on?

Yes. Gitea supports SAML 2.0 and can integrate with Azure AD via OAuth2/OpenID Connect, but configuration is manual and less polished than GitHub Enterprise SSO.

Is there a limit to the number of repositories I can host on Gitea?

No hard limit; the ceiling is determined by the underlying storage and hardware you provision. Performance may degrade without proper scaling measures.

Will I lose my GitHub Packages (container images) when moving to Gitea?

Yes. Gitea does not provide a built‑in container registry. You would need to migrate images to an external registry (e.g., Docker Hub, Harbor) and update references.

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