# Free alternatives to GitLab

> GitLab (Premium) costs $348 a year. Free alternatives: GitLab Community Edition (self-managed) and Forgejo. Data checked 2026-10-17.

- Page: https://stoprenting.dev/apps/gitlab/
- Category: Developer Tools (https://stoprenting.dev/categories/developer-tools/)
- Vendor: GitLab
- Plan: Premium
- Price: $29/month, $348/year
- Billing: per user per month, billed annually ($348/user/yr)
- Price quote from the vendor's page: "Premium Most popular For scaling organizations seeking enhanced productivity and collaboration $ 29 per user/month, billed annually"
- Price source: https://about.gitlab.com/pricing/ (checked 2026-10-17)

## Alternatives

### GitLab Community Edition (self-managed)

- Website: https://about.gitlab.com/install/
- Repository: https://github.com/gitlabhq/gitlabhq (24,551 stars, last push 2026-10-17)
- License: MIT (Community Edition; ee/ directory is proprietary)
- Open source: yes, OSI-approved license
- Type: server app
- Linux: self-hosted server; web UI
- Self-hostable: yes
- Note: Free tier only: no required merge-request approvals, code owners, epics or merge trains from Premium.
- More: https://stoprenting.dev/alternatives/gitlab-community-edition-self-managed/
- Checked: 2026-10-17

### Forgejo

- Website: https://forgejo.org
- License: GPL-3.0-or-later
- Open source: yes, OSI-approved license
- Type: server app
- Linux: self-hosted server; web UI
- Self-hostable: yes
- Note: GitLab CI pipelines must be rewritten as Actions-style workflows, and you run your own runners.
- More: https://stoprenting.dev/alternatives/forgejo/
- Checked: 2026-10-17

## FAQ

### Is there a free alternative to GitLab?

Yes. The 2 free alternatives are GitLab Community Edition (self-managed) (open source, MIT) and Forgejo (open source, GPL-3.0-or-later).

### How much does GitLab cost?

GitLab's Premium plan costs $29 a month, which is $348 a year (per user per month, billed annually ($348/user/yr)). Source: the official pricing page at about.gitlab.com, checked Oct 17, 2026.

### Which GitLab alternatives run on Linux?

GitLab Community Edition (self-managed) (self-hosted server; web UI) and Forgejo (self-hosted server; web UI).

### Can you self-host a GitLab alternative?

Yes. GitLab Community Edition (self-managed) and Forgejo run on your own server.

### Are these GitLab alternatives open source?

Yes. All 2 use OSI-approved open-source licenses: GitLab Community Edition (self-managed) (MIT) and Forgejo (GPL-3.0-or-later).

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Source: Stop Renting (https://stoprenting.dev). Methodology: https://stoprenting.dev/methodology/