Tekton is a cloud-native, Kubernetes-based CI/CD platform built for modern containerized workflows, while Jenkins is a traditional, plugin-based automation server with broader ecosystem support and longer market presence. Tekton excels in Kubernetes environments, whereas Jenkins dominates in hybrid and on-premises deployments.
Tekton vs Jenkins — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Budget-friendly hand and power tool brand owned by Lowe's Companies offering wrenches, sockets, drills, and fastening equipment.
Open-source automation server with extensive plugin ecosystem for CI/CD and infrastructure orchestration
Architecture. Plugin Ecosystem Size. Learning Curve. Kubernetes Integration. Container-First Design. Community & Adoption. Declarative Pipeline Definition
Choose Tekton if you are running on Kubernetes and want a modern, cloud-native CI/CD platform with excellent container integration and GitOps-friendly declarative pipelines. Choose Jenkins if you need extensive plugin support, operate in hybrid on-premises environments, require a mature ecosystem with established integrations, or prefer a web UI-based configuration approach.
Tekton: Unlimited (self-hosted) | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: GitHub, GitLab, Gitea, Bitbucket | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: Hub with ~500 Tekton tasks | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: Red Hat, Google, IBM, Shopify | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: Native self-hosted | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: 200+ community tasks | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: Dashboard not included | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: 25% of K8s CI/CD users | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: 31% of K8s CI/CD users | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: 200+ (Tekton Hub) | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: 3-5 days (YAML syntax) | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: Requires orchestration | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: Optional (webhook-based) | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: ~3,000 stars | Jenkins: ~22,000 stars
Tekton: ~50-80 official tasks | Jenkins: 1,800+ plugins
Tekton: ~3-5% market share | Jenkins: ~45% market share
Tekton: Built-in, runs as CRDs | Jenkins: Via plugins/agents
Tekton: Every step containerized | Jenkins: Requires configuration
Tekton: ~5 years (2019 release) | Jenkins: ~16 years (2010 launch)
Tekton: Primary (CRDs) | Jenkins: Secondary (JCasC/Jenkinsfile)
Setup Complexity (1-10, lower is easier)
Tekton: 8/10 (Kubernetes expertise required) | Jenkins: 5/10 (standard server setup)
Tekton: $25 (basic socket set) | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: $280 (1/2-inch impact wrench) | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: 2-5 (basic tool use) | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: -10 to 50°C (tool dependent) | Jenkins: N/A
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: $0 (self-hosted only)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: ~480-1440 minutes (8-24 hours setup)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Customer responsible
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Varies (depends on deployment)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Unlimited (self-hosted)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Any OS (plugin dependent)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: $5,000 (infrastructure)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: No (requires external Git)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: No (plugin available)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: 40-80 hours for full enterprise setup
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Gitea, custom platforms
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: High - Groovy/Declarative DSL + extensive UI configuration
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Unlimited (with distributed agents)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: $5000-$50000+ (optional support plans)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: 20-40 hours/month
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Manual provisioning via plugins
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Legacy JSP (2010s); Blue Ocean React optional
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: On-prem, Docker, Kubernetes, VMs, air-gapped
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Responsibility of operator
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Community only (24/7 forum)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: 2 (Jenkinsfile + UI)
Monthly Infrastructure Cost (10-developer team)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: $1,200 (server + maintenance)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: 3 weeks (Groovy DSL mastery)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Unlimited (on your infrastructure)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Medium (GitHub plugin + configuration)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: No (requires agent/plugin configuration)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Imperative Groovy scripting
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: No (manual reconciliation)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: ~30-60 min (VM setup, Docker, plugins)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Any platform (VM, cloud, on-prem, serverless)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: ~200,000+ organizations
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Biweekly (2 weeks)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Groovy DSL + YAML
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Kubernetes, VMs, bare metal, cloud-agnostic
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Manual/webhook-based
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Dedicated server + agents needed
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Imperative Groovy/XML (UI + code)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Moderate (familiar CI/CD concepts)
Monthly Cost (5 Users, Mid-Volume Usage)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: $50-150/month (server costs only)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Groovy/XML (powerful but complex)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Unlimited (if self-hosted)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: ~23K GitHub stars, 20+ year history
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Full control (on-premises)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: 1,800+ official plugins
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: Via plugin (Kubernetes plugin)
Tekton: N/A | Jenkins: UI + Groovy DSL + Jenkinsfile
How to choose between Tekton and Jenkins
Tekton vs Jenkins — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for Tekton vs Jenkins. Contains 111 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
Tekton vs Jenkins — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Tekton vs Jenkins.
Should I migrate from Jenkins to Tekton?
Migration makes sense if: (1) you're exclusively on Kubernetes, (2) you want GitOps-style declarative pipelines, and (3) you can invest time in learning CRDs and Kubernetes concepts. If you rely heavily on Jenkins plugins (>20) or operate hybrid infrastructure, staying with Jenkins is safer. Tekton's ecosystem has matured significantly in 2024-2026, but Jenkins' 1,800+ plugins are still unmatched.
Yes, Jenkins can run on Kubernetes via Helm charts or Docker, but it's not native to the platform. You'll still need external agents (pods or VMs) for build execution. Tekton, conversely, uses Kubernetes as its fundamental execution engine—every component is a Kubernetes resource.
Which requires less operational overhead?
Tekton requires less operational overhead in Kubernetes environments because it eliminates separate agent infrastructure, plugin management, and Java process overhead. Jenkins requires ongoing plugin updates, agent scaling configuration, and Java runtime management. However, Jenkins' web UI simplifies day-to-day configuration compared to Tekton's YAML learning curve.
Jenkins has a moderate learning curve—its web UI is accessible to non-technical users, and 15+ years of tutorials exist. Tekton has a steep curve: you must understand Kubernetes (Namespaces, RBAC, CRDs), YAML syntax, and pipeline semantics. New Tekton users typically need 2-4 weeks of hands-on experience vs. 1-2 weeks for Jenkins.
Which integrates better with DevOps tools?
Jenkins has broader integrations (1,800+ plugins support everything from Slack to AWS to custom tools). Tekton integrates natively with cloud-native tools (ArgoCD, Knative, Prometheus) and works seamlessly in Kubernetes ecosystems. For multi-cloud or legacy tool integration, Jenkins wins. For modern cloud-native stacks, Tekton excels.
How to Choose Between Tekton and Jenkins
Architecture: Tekton has Cloud-native, Kubernetes-native CRDs, while Jenkins has Traditional Java-based server with plugins.
Plugin Ecosystem Size: Tekton has ~50-80 integrated tasks/catalogs, while Jenkins has 1,800+ plugins available.
Learning Curve: Tekton has Steep (requires Kubernetes, YAML, CRD knowledge), while Jenkins has Moderate (web UI, established documentation).
Kubernetes Integration: Tekton has Native, runs as Kubernetes workloads, while Jenkins has Requires external agents or plugins.
Container-First Design: Tekton has Every step runs in containers by default, while Jenkins has Requires configuration for containerization.
Community & Adoption: Tekton has ~3,000 GitHub stars, growing adoption (2024-2026), while Jenkins has ~22,000 GitHub stars, 45%+ market share in CI/CD.
Consider: Declarative Pipeline Definition
Declarative Pipeline Definition: Tekton has YAML-based, version-controllable CRDs, while Jenkins has Declarative (JCasC) and procedural (Jenkinsfile) options.