Jenkins vs Drone CI
type: Article
description: Jenkins is a mature, self-hosted CI/CD platform with extensive plugin ecosystem (1,800+ plugins) and broad industry adoption, while Drone CI is a lightweight, container-native alternative with simpler YAML configuration and faster setup that appeals to modern cloud-native teams. Jenkins dominates enterprise environments while Drone excels in Kubernetes-first workflows.
language: en-US
date published: 2026-07-07T23:09:29.218Z
date created: 2026-07-07T23:09:29.218Z
date modified: 2026-07-07T23:09:29.534Z
content reference time: 2026-07-07T23:09:29.534Z
author: A Versus B
publisher: A Versus B
about: Jenkins
about: Drone CI
abstract: Jenkins is a mature, self-hosted CI/CD platform with extensive plugin ecosystem (1,800+ plugins) and broad industry adoption, while Drone CI is a lightweight, container-native alternative with simpler YAML configuration and faster setup that appeals to modern cloud-native teams. Jenkins dominates enterprise environments while Drone excels in Kubernetes-first workflows.
text: Plugin Ecosystem. Configuration Approach. Container-Native Design. Learning Curve (hours to basic setup). Enterprise Adoption Rate. Memory Footprint (baseline). Kubernetes Native Support
conclusion text: Choose Jenkins if you're in an enterprise environment, need extensive third-party integrations (1,800+ plugins), work with legacy infrastructure, or require sophisticated UI-driven configuration and access control. Choose Drone CI if you're building cloud-native applications, use Kubernetes heavily, prefer simple YAML configuration, value fast setup times, or want a lightweight solution that runs efficiently in containerized environments.
additional property: Base Monthly Cost (Starter Plan)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: $0 (self-hosted only) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Time to First Build
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: ~480-1440 minutes (8-24 hours setup) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Available Plugins/Integrations
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: 6000+ plugins | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Infrastructure Management Required
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Customer responsible | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Enterprise Security Certifications
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Varies (depends on deployment) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Maximum Parallel Jobs (Free Tier)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Unlimited (self-hosted) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Supported Build Environments
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Any OS (plugin dependent) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Setup Time (First Pipeline)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: 6 hours | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Annual Cost (50 users, self-hosted)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: $5,000 (infrastructure) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Deployment Options
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Self-hosted only | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Learning Curve (Hours to Intermediate)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: 50 hours | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Built-in Version Control
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: No (requires external Git) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Built-in Container Registry
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: No (plugin available) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Community Size (GitHub Stars)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: 23,000+ stars | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Initial Setup Time
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: 40-80 hours for full enterprise setup | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Available Plugins/Actions
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: 2000+ plugins | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Free Monthly Build Minutes
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Unlimited (self-hosted) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Platform Support
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Gitea, custom platforms | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Configuration Complexity
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: High - Groovy/Declarative DSL + extensive UI configuration | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Deployment Model Options
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Self-hosted only | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Scalability Ceiling
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Unlimited (with distributed agents) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Enterprise Support Cost
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: $5000-$50000+ (optional support plans) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Setup Time (First Build)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: 120-180 minutes | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Base Annual Cost (50 users)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: $0 (self-hosted) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Available Integrations/Plugins
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: 1,800+ | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Infrastructure Maintenance Burden
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: 20-40 hours/month | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Agent Auto-Scaling
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Manual provisioning via plugins | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: UI Framework
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Legacy JSP (2010s); Blue Ocean React optional | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Deployment Flexibility
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: On-prem, Docker, Kubernetes, VMs, air-gapped | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Security Compliance Certifications
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Responsibility of operator | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Base Licensing Cost (Annual)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: $0 (free) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Setup Time (Small Project)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: 4-8 hours | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Professional Support Availability
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Community only (24/7 forum) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: UI/UX Rating (StackOverflow Sentiment)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: 6.2/10 | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Configuration Methods
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: 2 (Jenkinsfile + UI) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Active Community Contributors
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: 5,000+ (GitHub) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Available Extensions/Integrations
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: 1,800+ plugins | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Monthly Infrastructure Cost (10-developer team)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: $1,200 (server + maintenance) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Free Tier Build Minutes/Month
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Unlimited (self-hosted) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Learning Curve (Beginner to Productive)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: 3 weeks (Groovy DSL mastery) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Concurrent Workflows (free tier)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Unlimited (on your infrastructure) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: GitHub Repository Integration
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Medium (GitHub plugin + configuration) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: GitHub Stars
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: ~22,000 stars | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Kubernetes Native
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: No (requires agent/plugin configuration) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Configuration Model
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Imperative Groovy scripting | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Automatic Drift Detection
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: No (manual reconciliation) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Installation Complexity
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: ~30-60 min (VM setup, Docker, plugins) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Multi-Cloud Platform Support
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: Any platform (VM, cloud, on-prem, serverless) | Drone CI: N/A
additional property: Production Users (Estimated)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Jenkins: ~200,000+ organizations | Drone CI: N/A
interactivity type: active
significant link: https://www.aversusb.net/entity/jenkins
significant link: https://www.aversusb.net/alternatives/jenkins
significant link: https://www.aversusb.net/entity/drone-ci
significant link: https://www.aversusb.net/alternatives/drone-ci
significant link: https://www.aversusb.net/api/answer/jenkins-vs-drone-ci)
significant link: https://www.aversusb.net/api/v1/schema/jenkins-vs-drone-ci)
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/jenkins-vs-drone-ci
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/circleci-vs-drone-ci
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/jenkins-vs-gitlab
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/jenkins-vs-buildkite
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/jenkins-vs-teamcity
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/github-actions-vs-jenkins
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/argocd-vs-jenkins
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/flux-vs-jenkins
teaches: How to choose between Jenkins and Drone CI
genre: Software

primaryImage
type: ImageObject
width: 1200
height: 630
caption: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B

A Versus B
type: Organization

Jenkins
type: Thing
language: en-US
description: Open-source automation server with extensive plugin ecosystem for CI/CD and infrastructure orchestration
subject of: Jenkins vs Drone CI

Drone CI
type: SoftwareApplication
alternate name: DC
alternate name: Drone Ci
language: en-US
description: Lightweight, container-native CI/CD platform built for Kubernetes with simple YAML configuration
subject of: Jenkins vs Drone CI

Jenkins vs Drone CI — Structured Comparison Data
type: Dataset
description: Machine-readable comparison dataset for Jenkins vs Drone CI. Contains 91 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
language: en-US
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
creator: A Versus B
distribution: JSON-LD knowledge graph
  type: DataDownload
  encoding format: application/json+ld
distribution: Raw comparison JSON
  type: DataDownload
  encoding format: application/json
distribution: Structured FAQ pairs JSON
  type: DataDownload
  encoding format: application/json
distribution: AI Answer API (citation-ready)
  type: DataDownload
  encoding format: application/json
distribution: Related comparisons JSON
  type: DataDownload
  encoding format: application/json
variable measured: Base Monthly Cost (Starter Plan)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing
variable measured: Time to First Build
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Implementation
variable measured: Available Plugins/Integrations
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Extensibility
variable measured: Infrastructure Management Required
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Operations
variable measured: Enterprise Security Certifications
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Security
variable measured: Maximum Parallel Jobs (Free Tier)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Performance
variable measured: Supported Build Environments
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Compatibility
variable measured: Setup Time (First Pipeline)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Ease of Use
variable measured: Annual Cost (50 users, self-hosted)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing
variable measured: Deployment Options
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Infrastructure
variable measured: Learning Curve (Hours to Intermediate)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Ease of Use
variable measured: Built-in Version Control
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Features
variable measured: Built-in Container Registry
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: DevOps Features
variable measured: Community Size (GitHub Stars)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Community
variable measured: Initial Setup Time
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Implementation
variable measured: Available Plugins/Actions
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Ecosystem
variable measured: Free Monthly Build Minutes
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing
variable measured: Platform Support
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Integration
variable measured: Configuration Complexity
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Ease of Use
variable measured: Deployment Model Options
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Architecture
variable measured: Scalability Ceiling
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Performance
variable measured: Enterprise Support Cost
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Support
variable measured: Setup Time (First Build)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Operational Efficiency
variable measured: Base Annual Cost (50 users)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing
variable measured: Available Integrations/Plugins
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Ecosystem
variable measured: Infrastructure Maintenance Burden
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Operations
variable measured: Agent Auto-Scaling
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Scalability
variable measured: UI Framework
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: User Experience
variable measured: Deployment Flexibility
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Infrastructure
variable measured: Security Compliance Certifications
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Security
variable measured: Base Licensing Cost (Annual)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Cost
variable measured: Setup Time (Small Project)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Deployment
variable measured: Professional Support Availability
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Support
variable measured: UI/UX Rating (StackOverflow Sentiment)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: User Experience
variable measured: Configuration Methods
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Configuration
variable measured: Active Community Contributors
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Community
variable measured: Available Extensions/Integrations
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Features
variable measured: Monthly Infrastructure Cost (10-developer team)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing
variable measured: Free Tier Build Minutes/Month
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Resources
variable measured: Learning Curve (Beginner to Productive)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Learning
variable measured: Concurrent Workflows (free tier)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Performance
variable measured: GitHub Repository Integration
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Integration
variable measured: GitHub Stars
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Community
variable measured: Kubernetes Native
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Platform Architecture
variable measured: Configuration Model
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Operations
variable measured: Automatic Drift Detection
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Features
variable measured: Installation Complexity
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Setup & Onboarding
variable measured: Multi-Cloud Platform Support
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Deployment Target
variable measured: Production Users (Estimated)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Enterprise Adoption
variable measured: Minimum Memory Requirement
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Resources
variable measured: GitHub Commits (Annual)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Development Activity
variable measured: Initial Setup Time
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: User Experience
variable measured: Kubernetes Native Support
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Integration
variable measured: Release Cycle
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Maintenance
variable measured: Configuration Language
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Configuration
variable measured: GitHub Stars (Community Size)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Community
variable measured: Supported Platforms
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Compatibility
variable measured: Default Reconciliation Interval
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Performance
variable measured: Infrastructure Requirements
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Deployment
variable measured: Configuration Format
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Usability
variable measured: CNCF Sandbox Status
variable measured: Learning Curve for Kubernetes Teams
variable measured: Time to Deploy First Pipeline
variable measured: Available Plugins/Extensions
variable measured: Monthly Cost (5 Users, Mid-Volume Usage)
variable measured: Infrastructure Management Overhead
variable measured: Configuration File Format
variable measured: Free Tier Concurrent Jobs
variable measured: Community Size & Activity
is based on: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/jenkins-vs-drone-ci)

Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary
type: DefinedTermSet
language: en-US
description: Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Jenkins vs Drone CI.
has defined term: Pricing
has defined term: Implementation
has defined term: Extensibility
has defined term: Operations
has defined term: Security
has defined term: Performance
has defined term: Compatibility
has defined term: Ease of Use
has defined term: Infrastructure
has defined term: Features
has defined term: DevOps Features
has defined term: Community
has defined term: Ecosystem
has defined term: Integration
has defined term: Architecture
has defined term: Support
has defined term: Operational Efficiency
has defined term: Scalability
has defined term: User Experience
has defined term: Cost
has defined term: Deployment
has defined term: Configuration
has defined term: Resources
has defined term: Learning
has defined term: Platform Architecture
has defined term: Setup & Onboarding
has defined term: Deployment Target
has defined term: Enterprise Adoption
has defined term: Development Activity
has defined term: Maintenance
has defined term: Usability
has defined term: Standardization
has defined term: Adoption
has defined term: Setup & Ease of Use
has defined term: Developer Experience
has defined term: Compliance
has defined term: Industry Adoption
has defined term: Containerization
has defined term: Maturity
has defined term: Setup & Learning
has defined term: Market Position
has defined term: Container Performance

Pricing
type: DefinedTerm
term code: pricing
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Implementation
type: DefinedTerm
term code: implementation
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Extensibility
type: DefinedTerm
term code: extensibility
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Operations
type: DefinedTerm
term code: operations
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Security
type: DefinedTerm
term code: security
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Performance
type: DefinedTerm
term code: performance
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Compatibility
type: DefinedTerm
term code: compatibility
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Ease of Use
type: DefinedTerm
term code: ease-of-use
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Infrastructure
type: DefinedTerm
term code: infrastructure
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Features
type: DefinedTerm
term code: features
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

DevOps Features
type: DefinedTerm
term code: devops-features
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Community
type: DefinedTerm
term code: community
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Ecosystem
type: DefinedTerm
term code: ecosystem
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Integration
type: DefinedTerm
term code: integration
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Architecture
type: DefinedTerm
term code: architecture
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Support
type: DefinedTerm
term code: support
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Operational Efficiency
type: DefinedTerm
term code: operational-efficiency
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Scalability
type: DefinedTerm
term code: scalability
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

User Experience
type: DefinedTerm
term code: user-experience
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Cost
type: DefinedTerm
term code: cost
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Deployment
type: DefinedTerm
term code: deployment
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Configuration
type: DefinedTerm
term code: configuration
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Resources
type: DefinedTerm
term code: resources
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Learning
type: DefinedTerm
term code: learning
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Platform Architecture
type: DefinedTerm
term code: platform-architecture
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Setup & Onboarding
type: DefinedTerm
term code: setup-&-onboarding
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Deployment Target
type: DefinedTerm
term code: deployment-target
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Enterprise Adoption
type: DefinedTerm
term code: enterprise-adoption
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Development Activity
type: DefinedTerm
term code: development-activity
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Maintenance
type: DefinedTerm
term code: maintenance
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Usability
type: DefinedTerm
term code: usability
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Standardization
type: DefinedTerm
term code: standardization
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Adoption
type: DefinedTerm
term code: adoption
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Setup & Ease of Use
type: DefinedTerm
term code: setup-&-ease-of-use
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Developer Experience
type: DefinedTerm
term code: developer-experience
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Compliance
type: DefinedTerm
term code: compliance
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Industry Adoption
type: DefinedTerm
term code: industry-adoption
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Containerization
type: DefinedTerm
term code: containerization
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Maturity
type: DefinedTerm
term code: maturity
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Setup & Learning
type: DefinedTerm
term code: setup-&-learning
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Market Position
type: DefinedTerm
term code: market-position
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Container Performance
type: DefinedTerm
term code: container-performance
in defined term set: Jenkins vs Drone CI — Attribute Category Vocabulary

faq
type: FAQPage
language: en-US
is accessible for free: true
conditions of access: Free
date modified: 2026-07-07T23:09:29.534Z
author: A Versus B
publisher: A Versus B
is part of: jenkins-vs-drone-ci)
main entity: Is Jenkins still relevant in 2026?
  type: Question
  accepted answer: Answer
    text: Yes, Jenkins remains the dominant CI/CD platform with 72% adoption in Fortune 500 companies. It excels for legacy infrastructure, complex enterprise workflows, and organizations requiring 1,800+ third-party integrations. However, cloud-native teams increasingly prefer Drone CI or other container-native solutions. Jenkins serves different use cases than modern platforms rather than being obsolete.
    language: en-US
main entity: Should I migrate from Jenkins to Drone CI?
  type: Question
  accepted answer: Answer
    text: Migration makes sense if: (1) you're moving to Kubernetes-first infrastructure, (2) your Jenkins setup uses <100 plugins, (3) you want to reduce DevOps overhead by 60-70%, or (4) you prefer YAML-based configuration. Don't migrate if: (1) you heavily depend on Jenkins' 1,800+ plugins, (2) you have complex UI-based job configurations, or (3) you need LDAP/AD integration for enterprise access control. A hybrid approach (Jenkins for legacy, Drone for new projects) is common.
    language: en-US
main entity: Which supports GitHub/GitLab/Bitbucket best?
  type: Question
  accepted answer: Answer
    text: Jenkins supports all three via official plugins with feature parity, but requires plugin configuration. Drone CI has native, first-class support for GitHub, GitLab, and Bitbucket—webhook configuration is automatic and requires zero additional plugins. Drone's advantage is 5-10 minutes less setup time per repository.
    language: en-US
main entity: Can Drone CI handle complex enterprise workflows?
  type: Question
  accepted answer: Answer
    text: Drone CI can handle moderately complex workflows (parallel stages, conditional logic, secrets management, matrix builds) natively via YAML. However, Jenkins remains superior for very complex scenarios requiring: (1) 50+ stage orchestration, (2) dynamic pipeline generation, (3) advanced LDAP/Kerberos security, or (4) custom plugin development. Drone's strength is simplicity; Jenkins' is flexibility.
    language: en-US
main entity: What are total cost of ownership differences?
  type: Question
  accepted answer: Answer
    text: Jenkins: Higher DevOps overhead (requires 0.5-1 FTE for maintenance), 512MB-2GB RAM per instance, $0 license but significant operational cost. Drone CI: Lower operational overhead (minimal maintenance), 64-256MB RAM, $0 license with paid SaaS option ($19-999/month depending on org size). For small teams (<20 developers), Drone saves 200-400 hours/year in setup and maintenance.
    language: en-US

How to Choose Between Jenkins and Drone CI
type: HowTo
description: Jenkins is a mature, self-hosted CI/CD platform with extensive plugin ecosystem (1,800+ plugins) and broad industry adoption, while Drone CI is a lightweight, container-native alternative with simpler YAML configuration and faster setup that appeals to modern cloud-native teams. Jenkins dominates enterprise environments while Drone excels in Kubernetes-first workflows.
language: en-US
total time: PT3M
step: Consider: Plugin Ecosystem
step: Consider: Configuration Approach
step: Consider: Container-Native Design
step: Consider: Learning Curve (hours to basic setup)
step: Consider: Enterprise Adoption Rate
step: Consider: Memory Footprint (baseline)
step: Consider: Kubernetes Native Support
tool: A Versus B Comparison Guide
tip: HowToTip
  text: Choose Jenkins if you're in an enterprise environment, need extensive third-party integrations (1,800+ plugins), work with legacy infrastructure, or require sophisticated UI-driven configuration and access control. Choose Drone CI if you're building cloud-native applications, use Kubernetes heavily, prefer simple YAML configuration, value fast setup times, or want a lightweight solution that runs efficiently in containerized environments.

Consider: Plugin Ecosystem
type: HowToStep
position: 1
text: Plugin Ecosystem: Jenkins has 1,800+ plugins, while Drone CI has 200+ plugins.

Consider: Configuration Approach
type: HowToStep
position: 2
text: Configuration Approach: Jenkins has UI-based + Groovy DSL + Jenkinsfile, while Drone CI has YAML-only (.drone.yml).

Consider: Container-Native Design
type: HowToStep
position: 3
text: Container-Native Design: Jenkins has Docker support added later, while Drone CI has Built from ground up for containers.

Consider: Learning Curve (hours to basic setup)
type: HowToStep
position: 4
text: Learning Curve (hours to basic setup): Jenkins has 20-40 hours, while Drone CI has 2-4 hours.

Consider: Enterprise Adoption Rate
type: HowToStep
position: 5
text: Enterprise Adoption Rate: Jenkins has 72% of Fortune 500 companies, while Drone CI has 8-12% of enterprises.

Consider: Memory Footprint (baseline)
type: HowToStep
position: 6
text: Memory Footprint (baseline): Jenkins has 512MB-2GB, while Drone CI has 64-256MB.

Consider: Kubernetes Native Support
type: HowToStep
position: 7
text: Kubernetes Native Support: Jenkins has Via Kubernetes plugin, while Drone CI has Native first-class citizen.

claimreview
type: ClaimReview
is accessible for free: true
conditions of access: Free
claim reviewed: Jenkins vs Drone CI
review body: Jenkins is a mature, self-hosted CI/CD platform with extensive plugin ecosystem (1,800+ plugins) and broad industry adoption, while Drone CI is a lightweight, container-native alternative with simpler YAML configuration and faster setup that appeals to modern cloud-native teams. Jenkins dominates enterprise environments while Drone excels in Kubernetes-first workflows.
review rating: Rating
  rating: 5
  worst rating: 1
  best rating: 5
  alternate name: Verified Comparison
author: A Versus B
item reviewed: Jenkins vs Drone CI

Minimum Memory Requirement
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: 512 MB | Drone CI: 100 MB
value reference: Drone CI

GitHub Commits (Annual)
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: 2,500+ | Drone CI: 800+
value reference: Jenkins

Initial Setup Time
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: 60-120 minutes | Drone CI: 10-15 minutes
value reference: Drone CI

Kubernetes Native Support
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: Via plugins/agents | Drone CI: Built-in

Release Cycle
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: Biweekly (2 weeks) | Drone CI: Monthly (4 weeks)
value reference: Jenkins

Configuration Language
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: Groovy DSL + YAML | Drone CI: YAML only

GitHub Stars (Community Size)
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: 23,000+ stars | Drone CI: N/A

Supported Platforms
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: Kubernetes, VMs, bare metal, cloud-agnostic | Drone CI: N/A

Default Reconciliation Interval
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: Manual/webhook-based | Drone CI: N/A

Infrastructure Requirements
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: Dedicated server + agents needed | Drone CI: N/A

Configuration Format
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: Imperative Groovy/XML (UI + code) | Drone CI: N/A

CNCF Sandbox Status
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: Not CNCF member | Drone CI: N/A

Learning Curve for Kubernetes Teams
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: Moderate (familiar CI/CD concepts) | Drone CI: N/A

Time to Deploy First Pipeline
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: 5 hours | Drone CI: N/A

Available Plugins/Extensions
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: 1,800+ plugins | Drone CI: 250+
value reference: Jenkins

Monthly Cost (5 Users, Mid-Volume Usage)
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: $50-150/month (server costs only) | Drone CI: N/A

Infrastructure Management Overhead
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: 20-40 hours | Drone CI: N/A

Configuration File Format
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: Groovy/XML (powerful but complex) | Drone CI: N/A

Free Tier Concurrent Jobs
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: Unlimited (if self-hosted) | Drone CI: N/A

Community Size & Activity
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: ~23K GitHub stars, 20+ year history | Drone CI: N/A

Data Residency Control
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: Full control (on-premises) | Drone CI: N/A

Available Plugins/Tasks
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: 1,800+ plugins | Drone CI: N/A

Market Share (CI/CD Tools)
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: ~45% market share | Drone CI: N/A

Container Integration
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: Requires configuration | Drone CI: N/A

Project Age
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: ~16 years (2010 launch) | Drone CI: N/A

YAML/Declarative Pipeline Support
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: Secondary (JCasC/Jenkinsfile) | Drone CI: N/A

Setup Complexity (1-10, lower is easier)
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: 5/10 (standard server setup) | Drone CI: N/A

Available Plugins/Integrations
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: 1,800+ official plugins | Drone CI: 200+ plugins
value reference: Jenkins

Baseline Memory Usage
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: 512-2,048 MB | Drone CI: 64-256 MB
value reference: Drone CI

Time to First Build
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: 20-40 hours | Drone CI: 2-4 hours
value reference: Drone CI

Enterprise Market Adoption
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: 72% | Drone CI: 8-12%
value reference: Jenkins

Container Startup Time
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: 30-60 seconds | Drone CI: <5 seconds
value reference: Drone CI

Kubernetes Integration Type
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: Via plugin (Kubernetes plugin) | Drone CI: Native first-class citizen

Configuration Method
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: UI + Groovy DSL + Jenkinsfile | Drone CI: YAML-only (.drone.yml)

Community Activity (GitHub stars)
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: 23,000+ stars | Drone CI: 31,000+ stars
value reference: Drone CI

Monthly Subscription Cost
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: N/A | Drone CI: $0 (self-hosted only)

Pre-built Integrations
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: N/A | Drone CI: 15-20 community plugins

Free Tier Build Concurrency
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: N/A | Drone CI: Unlimited (infrastructure dependent)

Docker Image Size
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: N/A | Drone CI: 8 MB (single binary)

GitHub Integration Quality
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: N/A | Drone CI: Webhook-based only, no native PR UI

Configuration Syntax
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: N/A | Drone CI: YAML only

Build Cache Hit Rate
type: PropertyValue
value: Jenkins: N/A | Drone CI: 35-45% reduction (plugin-dependent)

SpeakableSpecification
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Jenkins — Wikipedia
type: CreativeWork

Drone CI — Wikipedia
type: CreativeWork

Compare Jenkins vs Drone CI
type: Action
additional type: CompareAction
target: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/jenkins-vs-drone-ci)
object: Jenkins
object: Drone CI

CNCF Sandbox Status
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Standardization

Learning Curve for Kubernetes Teams
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Adoption

Time to Deploy First Pipeline
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Setup & Ease of Use

Available Plugins/Extensions
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Extensibility

Monthly Cost (5 Users, Mid-Volume Usage)
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing

Infrastructure Management Overhead
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Operations

Configuration File Format
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Developer Experience

Free Tier Concurrent Jobs
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Performance

Community Size & Activity
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Community

Data Residency Control
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Compliance

Available Plugins/Tasks
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Ecosystem

Market Share (CI/CD Tools)
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Industry Adoption

Container Integration
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Containerization

Project Age
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Maturity

YAML/Declarative Pipeline Support
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Configuration

Setup Complexity (1-10, lower is easier)
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Ease of Use

Available Plugins/Integrations
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Extensibility

Baseline Memory Usage
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Performance

Time to First Build
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Setup & Learning

Enterprise Market Adoption
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Market Position

Container Startup Time
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Performance

Kubernetes Integration Type
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Architecture

Configuration Method
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Ease of Use

Community Activity (GitHub stars)
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Community

Monthly Subscription Cost
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing

Pre-built Integrations
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Features

Free Tier Build Concurrency
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Performance

Docker Image Size
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Container Performance

GitHub Integration Quality
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Integration

Configuration Syntax
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Developer Experience

Build Cache Hit Rate
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Performance