compare
Gradle vs sbt
The same facts for both, read from GitHub every night, and the relation a person reviewed.
| Fact | Gradle | sbt |
|---|---|---|
| Language | Groovy | Scala |
| Licence | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Stars | 19k | 5k |
| Latest | v9.8.1 | v2.0.11 |
| Last push | 2026-10-19 | 2026-10-18 |
| Release cadence | about 7 days between releases | too few releases |
| Active contributors | 28+ commit authors on the default branch in the last 90 days | 25 commit authors on the default branch in the last 90 days |
| Flags | none | none |
How they relate
Both replace Apache Maven. Alternatives to Apache Maven →
Full replacementGradleBuild scripts in Groovy or Kotlin instead of XML, with the same dependency repositories.
PartialsbtBuilds JVM projects from a Scala build definition, strongest on Scala; Maven plugins do not carry over.
Gradle
- v8.14.62026-10-088.14.6
- v9.8.12026-10-079.8.1
- v9.8.02026-09-249.8.0
- v9.8.0-RC32026-09-229.8.0 RC3pre-release
- v9.8.0-RC22026-09-179.8.0 RC2pre-release
sbt
- v2.0.112026-10-182.0.11
- v2.1.0-RC12026-10-112.1.0-RC1pre-release
- v2.0.102026-10-022.0.10
- v2.1.0-M32026-09-282.1.0-M3pre-release
- v2.1.0-M22026-09-212.1.0-M2pre-release
Gradle
✓ signed The latest release, v9.8.1, carries a signature GitHub verified.
Loading the security report
sbt
✓ signed The latest release, v2.0.11, carries a signature GitHub verified.
Loading the security report