# Drone CI vs Zealot

> Two self-hosted [CI/CD projects](https://selfhost.directory/cicd), compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.

| | Drone CI | Zealot |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 79/100 ✓ | 55/100 |
| Rank in category | #4 of 28 in CI/CD | #17 of 28 in CI/CD |
| GitHub stars | 38 745 ✓ | 1 366 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +318 | — |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 6 ✓ | 3 |
| Latest release | v2.28.2 · 20 Apr 2026 | 6.2.2 · 25 Jul 2026 ✓ |
| Setup | Easy ✓ | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Main language | Go | Ruby |

## Which one should you pick?

Drone CI scores 79/100 against 55/100 for Zealot, so it is the safer default.

Drone CI ships more often: 6 stable releases in the past year, against 3 for Zealot.

If you want the quickest setup, Drone CI is easier to run; Zealot needs more configuration.

Drone CI is growing faster right now (+318 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [Drone CI](https://selfhost.directory/project/drone-ci) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/drone-ci.md)
- [Zealot](https://selfhost.directory/project/zealot) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/zealot.md)

---
Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/drone-ci-vs-zealot