World-leading code hosting platform with Git repositories, GitHub Actions CI/CD, Copilot AI coding assistant, and 100M+ developers. Free for open source, Team plan at $4/user/mo, Enterprise at $21/user/mo.
GitHub is a developer tools platform founded in 2008 with a hiltonsoftware Score of 92/100. GitHub pricing starts at $4/user/mo/month with a free plan available. GitHub serves 100M+ users and competes with GitLab, Vercel, and Postman in the developer tools market. Key GitHub features include Unlimited public and private repositories, GitHub Actions CI/CD (2,000 free minutes/mo), and GitHub Copilot AI pair programmer. hiltonsoftware.co rates GitHub 4.8/5 based on user ratings (40%), feature depth (25%), value for money (20%), market presence (10%), and growth trajectory (5%).
Software development teams of all sizes, from solo developers to Fortune 500 enterprises, hosting code, running CI/CD, and collaborating on projects. Especially strong for open-source projects and teams using AI-assisted coding with Copilot.
Complete pricing breakdown for all GitHub plans. Updated March 2026.
Side-by-side pricing and feature comparison of the top Git hosting platforms.
| Feature | GitHub | GitLab | Bitbucket |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free Plan | Yes (5 collaborators) | Yes (5 users) | Yes (5 users) |
| Paid Plan Starting Price | $4/user/mo | $29/user/mo | $3/user/mo |
| Enterprise Plan | $21/user/mo | $99/user/mo | $6/user/mo |
| Free CI/CD Minutes | 2,000/mo | 400/mo | 50/mo |
| AI Coding Assistant | Copilot ($10-19/mo) | Duo ($19/mo) | None |
| Self-Hosted Option | Enterprise Server | Yes (any plan) | Data Center ($27K/yr) |
| Built-in Security Scanning | Enterprise only | Ultimate only | No (use Snyk) |
| Package Registry | npm, Docker, Maven | npm, Docker, Maven | No |
| Community Size | 100M+ developers | 30M+ users | 10M+ users |
| Best Integration | VS Code, Copilot | Kubernetes, SAST | Jira, Confluence |
Yes, GitHub offers a generous free plan that includes unlimited public and private repositories, up to 5 collaborators on private repos, 2,000 GitHub Actions CI/CD minutes per month, and access to GitHub Copilot Free with 2,000 completions per month. The free plan is suitable for individual developers, small teams, and open-source projects.
GitHub Team plan costs $4 per user per month (billed annually) or $5 per user per month (billed monthly). This includes unlimited collaborators, 3,000 GitHub Actions minutes, required reviewers on pull requests, CODEOWNERS file support, and web-based support. For larger organizations, GitHub Enterprise costs $21 per user per month with SAML SSO, advanced security, and audit logging.
GitHub is significantly cheaper for paid plans. GitHub Team costs $4/user/month compared to GitLab Premium at $29/user/month. GitHub Enterprise is $21/user/month vs GitLab Ultimate at $99/user/month. However, GitLab includes more built-in features like security scanning at lower tiers. For a team of 10 developers, GitHub Team costs $40/month vs GitLab Premium at $290/month.
Yes, GitHub offers the GitHub Student Developer Pack completely free to verified students. It includes GitHub Pro features (unlimited private repos, unlimited collaborators), GitHub Copilot access, and over 100 partner offers including free domains, cloud credits, and developer tools. Students can apply at education.github.com with a valid school email or student ID.
GitHub Enterprise costs $21 per user per month. It includes everything in the Team plan plus: 50,000 GitHub Actions minutes, 50GB Packages storage, GitHub Advanced Security (CodeQL and secret scanning), SAML single sign-on, SCIM provisioning, audit log API, IP allow list, and 24/7 premium support. GitHub Enterprise Server (self-hosted) is also available at the same price.
Reviewed by Sarah Mitchell, Cloud & Developer Tools Editor. Last updated: March 2026. Pricing verified. Methodology