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PMD vs CodeQL: catalog facts
PMD	CodeQL
Free Free to download and use, with source code published on GitHub.	Freemium Free for research and open source code; other use falls under GitHub's CodeQL terms.
Windows, macOS, Linux, Command line	Command line
Large built-in rule set for Java, with support for other languages Extensible with custom rules and rulesets	Queries follow data flow from source to sink across a codebase Finds every variant of a known bug pattern
Command-line tool with no graphical interface of its own Rulesets need tuning to avoid noisy reports on large codebases	Free use is limited to research and open source code Writing custom queries means learning the QL language
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Closed source
License not stated	License: GitHub CodeQL Terms and Conditions
No account needed	Not stated if an account is needed
Works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 1, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 24, 2026

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