Top 10 Continuous Integration (CI) Tools In 2019

Jenkins is an open-source CI tool completely compiled and written in Java that originated as a subsidiary of Oracle created by Sun Microsystems.

Jenkins is a cross-platform CI tool with configurations for both GUI interface and console commands. So there’s no need to give in to pesky code walls when working.

It’s an extremely flexible program that can be powered through add-ons and plugins. It has a highly extensive plugin list that is very comprehensive and can be added from the console as well. Users can also distribute builds and test loads on multiple machines.

Even though it’s available under a distributed license, users can use it for free with certain restrictions on the sharing of resources and final builds.

Bamboo uses a popular pipeline system which can be accessed simply by making a Bitbucket account.

Bamboo is available for a frenzy of systems and OS applications and helps companies in meeting their continuous integration needs by using Docker pipelines, all of which are tasked through the Bamboo Cloud.

When coming to the economics of the CI parts, Bamboo is free to try for the first 30 days and offers two separate plans for small and growing teams.

Being a creation of Atlassian, it has native support for JIRA and BitBucket and teams can even import Jenkins configurations into the Bamboo easily.

Users will find the CI tool to be great for on-premises setups but a little buggy for cloud setups. Bitbucket Pipelines has well replaced the cloud solution.

Pipelines have become a modern and fast cloud CI tool integrated into Bitbucket.

CircleCI is yet another cloud alternative but may be a deal breaker to some because it only supports GitHub.

It does, however, support a host of languages including Java, Ruby/Rails, Python, Node.js, PHP, Haskell and Scala.

CircleCI, however, is much different from other systems in the fact that while softwares for continuous integration are priced on builds, while CircleCI uses containers.

You can use one container for free from where you can build as many projects on it as you need. You can even add on to other projects to the level of parallelisation that suits your needs.
There are five distinct levels of parallelisation with containers up to 16 limits. All these support the Docker mainframe with flexible tools that are easy to learn and use.

A free version exists for the first few iterations while paid versions come with full support.

Travis CI is a web-hosted CI tool that has won the trust of the industry, particularly for its great UI features and tools for sharing documentation.

It comes with the on-premise version in the form of an enterprise package. Travis CI is free for all open source projects and is hosted on GitHub.

The first 100 builds are available for no cost, but the additional ones require a subscription package.

The pricing strategy is all determined by the number of concurrent builds you can run simultaneously.

Builds are configured using the .travis.yml file that has the build tasks which are executed on the build run that support several modern day computing languages.

Wercker is a fairly new CI tool in the market that has multiple platform compatibility and can handle complex bottleneck tasks by combining device configurations all together on a single platform.

Builds and runs can be executed as many times as possible under the beginner package which becomes more and more expensive with greater data uses.

Wrecker is free to use and can be distributed for new users as long as the company creates a service account on the vendor site.

GitLab CI is a well-known component of the open-source Rails project GitLab and became famous for its cross-compatibility features.

Hosted entirely on GitLab.com, its services are well aligned with the git repository management such as access control, issue tracking, code reviews and much more.

GitLab CI integrates well with the GitLab atmosphere and also can easily conduct projects with the GitLab API. Process building activities are much simpler and can be conducted using the Go language that can be made to run on Windows, Linux, OSX, FreeBSD, and Docker.

Gitlab CI is also supported on an open source community as well as a paid Enterprise edition.

Builds and runs are completely free except routing assignments which are commonly used by larger corporations.

Solano Labs has several tools that streamline build testing systems. Solano offers solutions for SaaS companies and is more centred towards providing a better experience by utilising user data.

Being compatible with most modern languages, Solano can be linked with data science tools like Scala, SPSS and SAS.

It has a custom console dedicated entirely to remove bugs.

The platform also has a load balancer to check how well the builds function across multiple servers.

It comes with an initial two weeks free trial period which can be changed to a premium package costing $100.

Go is one of the latest Cruise Control creations from the ThoughtWorks company that is free of charge except for the commercial licenses.

It is available for Windows, Mac and Linux and runs on a system of pipelines that help keep the workflow moving. Pipelines help in connecting all the stakeholders to the same scenario, improving communication on all fronts and allowing for a better understanding of the platform.

Instead of relying on larger workloads, pipelines break down tasks into smaller portions with teams designated for each section. This eventually brings about a change by removing bottlenecks and induces parallel execution tasks.

It’s well built to handle complex scenarios and is free of charge with payments for support.

Nevercode is a cloud-based CI and CD server well known for its automated approach to getting things done.

Users can build the initial runs and get to activities like testing and distributing mobile applications without any more intervention.

Among its many uses include having an automated build process for new code commits. Users can also integrate common app creation tools with the platform for all major OS systems.

Nevercode supports a high layer protocol cryptographic approach to protect and store passwords along with confidential data.

Companies can start by creating a free Hobby Plan with subscription packages later on that can take up to $500.

If you’re with a team that finds Docker commands to be a bit too complex to figure and understand, then using something a little bit more primitive yet powerful may be the need before moving on to the big stuff.

Unlike the other tools discussed here that come with support for Docker setups, Codefresh was designed and built with containers in mind.

Codefresh has been built around the entire system of pipelines.

You can still use docker files by choosing from several different templates to ease the migration of the project to Docker containers.

Codefresh is available for around 200 builds per month, with five concurrent builds and one hosted environment that can be used for free. The platform also has options for either hosted or on-premises setups.

You can even link Kubernetes and Helm Charts to the setups.