ToolsBitbucket vs GitHub: Best Tools To Use in 2023

Bitbucket and GitHub are two of the most popular version control and code hosting platforms for software development teams. Both platforms have their own unique features and capabilities, making it difficult to determine which one is the best option for a particular team or project. In this article, we will compare Bitbucket and GitHub in terms of their features, pricing, and user interface to help you make an informed decision.

There are some teams within an organization that prefer Asana, which is a good tool for product and marketing teams. Software developers and technicians may prefer Jira, which has its own benefits. Using an Asana-Jira integration, the organization can continue to use both project management software programs.

Introduction

Version control and code hosting platforms are essential tools for software development teams, as they allow developers to collaborate on code, track changes, and manage different versions of a project. Bitbucket and GitHub are two of the most popular platforms in this category, and they have been widely adopted by developers and organizations worldwide.

What is Bitbucket? 

Bitbucket is a web-based version control and code hosting platform that is owned and operated by Atlassian, the company behind JIRA and Confluence. Bitbucket is designed for use by teams and organizations, and it allows for collaboration and code review. It also supports both Git and Mercurial version control systems.

Because Bitbucket is an Atlassian product, you get an appealing interface right away. A significant feature of Bitbucket is its support for VCS (Version Control System). It also handles workflow management, access control and rest API integration.

What is GitHub?

GitHub, on the other hand, is a web-based platform that is owned by Microsoft. GitHub is widely used by individual developers, open-source projects, and teams of all sizes. GitHub uses the Git version control system and is the largest code host, with over 100 million repositories of code. It only supports Git, which is the most commonly used VCS.

GitHub vs Bitbucket: Full Comparison

Comparison of features in Bitbucket and GitHub is a crucial aspect when deciding on which platform to use for a software development project. Both Bitbucket and GitHub offer a wide range of features that are designed to make software development more efficient and collaborative.

Code review and collaboration tools

Both GitHub and Bitbucket offer pull requests and merge checks, which allow developers to collaborate on code and review changes before they are merged into the main branch.

Version control systems support

Bitbucket used to support both Git and Mercurial version control systems, allowing developers to choose the system they are most comfortable with. But in 2020 Bitbucket ended its support with mercurial. Now both Bitbucket and GitHub natively only support Git as its VCS.

UI and command-line interfaces

Both platforms offer web-based and command-line interfaces, making it easy to access and manage code from anywhere. Bitbucket has a more streamlined UI that focuses on the essentials of code management, such as source code, commits, and pull requests. GitHub, on the other hand, has a more complex UI that is optimized for social coding. The layout is more cluttered, with more emphasis on community features such as forks, stars, and followers. Since GitHub’s interface is simple enough to use by new coders, even novices can make use of Git. 

Issue tracking

Both Bitbucket and GitHub have built-in issue-tracking tools that allow developers to track and manage bugs and issues. Bitbucket has JIRA integration and Github has built-in issue-tracking tools.

Documentation

Bitbucket has built-in Confluence integration for documentation, making it easy for teams to collaborate on documentation and knowledge management. GitHub does not have this feature.

Access Control

Bitbucket offers more granular control over who can access and make changes to a project, which makes it a good option for organizations that have strict security and compliance requirements. GitHub offers more flexibility in terms of collaboration and open-source development.

Community and ecosystem

GitHub has a large and active community of developers and users, which makes it a great platform for open-source projects and individual developers. Additionally, GitHub has a wide range of integrations and add-ons available through the GitHub Marketplace. Bitbucket, on the other hand, does not have as large of a community as GitHub. And often only Business and enterprise teams use Bitbucket.

Code insights

Both Github and Bitbucket provide code insights, which give developers an overview of their code, including the number of lines of code, the number of commits, and the number of contributors.

Direct Integration

Bitbucket offers direct integration with other Atlassian tools such as JIRA and Confluence, which allows for seamless collaboration and streamlined workflow across different stages of the development process. Some direct integration available for Bitbucket are Jira, Bamboo, Crucible, and JenkinsExternal.

GitHub does not have direct integration with many common tools, but it has a wide range of integrations and add-ons available through the GitHub Marketplace, which allows developers to customize and extend the platform to suit specific needs. But still, Github has some direct integration available ie. Zendesk, Azure, Cloudbees, Google Cloud, Amazon, Code Climate, and Heroku.

Automation

Both Github and Bitbucket offer automation tools such as webhooks, APIs, and integrations with other tools that allow developers to automate repetitive tasks and streamline their workflow.

Pricing Structures

Bitbucket offers a free plan that includes unlimited public and private repositories, up to five users, and basic collaboration tools. The next plan is called "Standard" and costs $3 per user/month and includes more advanced collaboration tools, additional features such as built-in JIRA and Confluence integration, and advanced permissions and access control. The last plan is called "Premium" and costs $6 per user/month and includes additional features such as 24/7 support, compliance and security features. 

GitHub offers a free plan that includes unlimited public repositories, and basic collaboration tools. The next plan is called "Team" and costs $44 per user/year and includes more advanced collaboration tools, and additional features such as code owners, action and packages, and advanced permissions and access control. The last plan is called "Enterprise" and it is a customized plan that is designed to meet the needs of large organizations, and includes additional features such as compliance and security, and 24/7 support. 

It's worth noting that Bitbucket's pricing structure is based on the number of users, while GitHub's pricing structure is based on the features required. This means that if you have a small team, Bitbucket's pricing structure might be more cost-effective for you, as you only pay for the users that you need. On the other hand, if you require a specific set of features, GitHub's pricing structure might be more cost-effective for you, as you only pay for the features that you need.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Bitbucket and GitHub are two of the most popular code hosting and version control platforms for software development teams. Both platforms offer a wide range of features that are designed to make software development more efficient and collaborative.

However, Bitbucket is more flexible than GitHub and has built-in JIRA integration, which makes it an ideal choice for teams that already use this tool for issue tracking and documentation management, while GitHub offers a large community and a wide range of integrations and add-ons. When choosing between Bitbucket and GitHub, it's important for readers to consider their team's specific needs and requirements. Evaluate the specific features and integrations required for your project and determine which platform offers the best fit. 

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