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Chef vs Ansible: catalog facts
Chef	Ansible
Paid Commercial enterprise platform with a free trial; demos available on request.	Free The open-source software is available without a license fee. Hosting, hardware and…
Windows, macOS, Linux, Self-hosted	macOS, Linux, Command line
Policy-as-code for repeatable server configuration Built-in compliance auditing on a schedule	Uses reusable playbooks and commonly connects over SSH.
Aimed at enterprises, with sales-led pricing Considerable setup and learning before it pays off	Requires inventories, credentials and carefully maintained playbooks.
Downloadable app, Self-hosted	Downloadable app
Closed source	Open source
License not stated	License: GPL-3.0
Not stated if an account is needed	Not stated if an account is needed
Not stated if it works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 24, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 22, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.