GitLab significantly outpaces Woodpecker CI in community adoption with 24,513 stars compared to 7,596 stars on GitHub. This 3.2x difference suggests GitLab has a much larger and more active community. In terms of developer contributions, GitLab has 5,919 forks, indicating strong developer engagement.

Both projects show recent activity, with GitLab last updated 11 hours ago and Woodpecker CI 12 hours ago.

Both tools share common technology foundations, being built with JavaScript, CSS, Bash, Golang, Vue. However, they differ in their additional technology choices: GitLab uses Python, SCSS, Ruby, Clojure while Woodpecker CI leverages Typescript, JSX.

GitLab has been in development longer, starting 15 years ago, compared to Woodpecker CI which began 7 years ago. This 7.6-year head start suggests GitLab may have more mature features and established processes.

Woodpecker CI is licensed under Apache-2.0, while GitLab's license terms are not publicly specified.

Both tools serve similar use cases in CI/CD Platforms. However, they also have distinct specializations: GitLab also focuses on Project Management Suites, Git Platforms.

GitLab provides self-hosting options for complete data control and customization, while Woodpecker CI may be primarily cloud-based or require different deployment approaches.