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Most buyers should pick Gitea.
Forgejo is a self-hosted software forge focused on free software, federation, and a low server profile. Gitea covers Git hosting, code review, projects, packages, and CI/CD, with self-managed and cloud-managed options. Choose Forgejo if you want a free-software project and will run the infrastructure yourself. Choose Gitea if you need its listed integrations, package management, or a managed service, and can budget for paid plans as your deployment grows.
01Side by side
| Forgejo | Gitea | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Free software; no paid tiers listed | Free, paid self-managed, and managed plans |
| Free tier | Free and open source software | Unlimited users and repositories; MIT licensed |
| Open source and licence | Exclusively Free and Open Source Software | MIT licence for Open Source plan |
| Self-hosting | Download and run your own instance | Self-managed deployment available |
| API and SDKs | API and SDK details not listed | API and webhook support listed |
| Integrations | Accounts on Codeberg and other instances | Chat, CI/CD tools, API, and webhooks |
| Deployment model | Self-host or use community instances | Self-managed or Gitea Cloud |
| Platforms | Web-based forge; server platforms not listed | Linux, Windows, macOS, FreeBSD, Kubernetes |
Forgejo Choose Forgejo if
- Choose Forgejo if you want exclusively Free and Open Source Software.
- Choose Forgejo if federation and decentralized collaboration matter to your team.
- Choose Forgejo if you plan to own and operate the forge.
Gitea Choose Gitea if
- Choose Gitea if you need built-in CI/CD and package management.
- Choose Gitea if you want a managed cloud option.
- Choose Gitea if its listed chat and CI/CD integrations fit your stack.
02Pricing at real usage
Forgejo is free software, and its project pages list no monthly or annual price or commercial tier. Your direct costs come from the server and its operation. Gitea’s Open Source plan costs $0 and includes unlimited users and repositories. For teams that self-host, Enterprise lists $19 per user per month, or $9.50 per user per month with annual billing; the first admin is excluded from seat calculations, and annual billing requires a one-year commitment. Gitea Cloud lists $19 per instance per month, starts with two users, and includes 2,000 Actions minutes per month on that instance. The pricing page also lists a $79.17 monthly equivalent for 10 users billed annually. Object storage is $10 per 100GB. Check how additional storage and usage are billed before forecasting costs.
03API, SDKs and integration
Gitea’s homepage lists API and webhook support, alongside integrations including Slack, Discord, MS Teams, Lark, GitHub Actions, Drone, Woodpecker, Argo CD, and Jenkins. Gitea Actions supports workflows compatible with GitHub Actions, and the homepage says users can use more than 20,000 existing plugins. The homepage does not identify API protocols, SDK languages, a CLI, or rate limits, so confirm those details against the docs before building a client or automation around them. Forgejo’s homepage highlights accounts on Codeberg and other instances, but does not list an API, SDK, CLI, or integration catalog. It focuses on collaboration and federation. If you need to connect either forge to internal tools, verify the required endpoints, authentication, webhook behavior, and documentation before choosing. Gitea has the clearer stated integration surface; that alone does not establish that a specific connector will meet your needs.
04Open source, self-hosting and lock-in
Forgejo says it will always be Free and Open Source Software and that its own development uses only Free Software. Its homepage does not name a specific licence. Gitea’s Open Source plan lists the MIT licence. Both can be self-hosted; Forgejo also lets users choose community instances such as Codeberg, while Gitea offers self-managed Enterprise and managed Gitea Cloud. Self-hosting gives your team control of the server, but leaves upgrades and operations to you. Forgejo emphasizes federation and decentralized collaboration; Gitea lists replication configurations. Neither homepage describes data-export procedures. Before migrating, ask how to export repositories, issues, package data, and user records, then test what your team relies on. Moving Git repositories is only part of a forge migration; project history and integrations can require separate checks.
Questions people ask
Is Forgejo free?
Forgejo describes itself as exclusively Free and Open Source Software and publishes no paid commercial tier. You still need to provide and operate a server if you self-host. You can also create an account on Codeberg or another instance.
Is Gitea free to self-host?
Yes. Gitea’s Open Source plan is listed at $0 and includes unlimited users and repositories under the MIT licence. Gitea also sells a self-managed Enterprise plan with additional enterprise support and a separate cloud-managed option.
Are Forgejo and Gitea the same project?
They are separate software forge projects. Forgejo presents itself as a free-software, self-hosted forge focused in part on federation. Gitea describes a broader platform covering Git hosting, projects, packages, and CI/CD, with both self-managed and managed deployment options.
Which is better for a team that wants managed hosting?
Gitea lists Gitea Cloud as a managed option, with a 30-day free trial. Forgejo’s homepage offers self-hosting and accounts on other instances, but does not list a Forgejo-managed cloud plan. Compare the deployment terms and migration options before committing.