Drone CI

Open-source · self-hostable · replaces 1 SaaS tool on os-alt

harness/drone · alive · ★ 35.8k · last commit 2d ago · 91 open issues

License: Apache-2.0 — Acquired by Harness; OSS edition remains Apache-2.0; Enterprise adds RBAC and secrets manager.

Good fit for Container-native pipelines where every step is a Docker image — Drone is the most natural fit for that mental model.

Weak at macOS / iOS builds need self-hosted runners with manual setup; GPU builds similarly bring-your-own.

In a terminal? npx -y github:SolvoHQ/os-alt-cli circleci prints the CircleCI comparison table including Drone CI. how the CLI works →

Replaces these SaaS

CircleCI · Hosted CI/CD
Pull `drone/drone:2` and `drone/drone-runner-docker:1` via the official compose at docs.drone.io. Configure with your git provider OAuth (GitHub / GitLab / Gitea / Bitbucket). Pipeline conversion: CircleCI's `jobs/steps/workflows` map cleanly to Drone's `pipeline/steps/depends_on`; rewrite `.circleci/config.yml` as `.drone.yml`. Most CircleCI orbs have direct Drone plugin equivalents (S3, Slack, Docker).

README badges for the SaaS this replaces

Maintainers and forks: drop a badge in your README to link readers from the SaaS-comparison page back to your repo.

/circleci/

FAQ

Is Drone CI actively maintained?

Yes — last commit 2d ago. The repository is alive (commit activity within the past 90 days).

What does Drone CI cost to self-host?

Drone CI is free and open source under Apache-2.0. Typical self-host VPS cost: $10-20/mo VPS for the server; runners are separate (one $5 VPS per concurrent build).

Which SaaS does Drone CI replace?

Drone CI is listed as an open-source self-host alternative to: CircleCI.