Compare software

SpotBugs vs PMD: catalog facts
SpotBugs	PMD
Best for: Java developers who want automated bug detection in builds	Best for: Developers adding static analysis to Java projects and build pipelines
Free Free software under the GNU Lesser General Public License.	Free Free to download and use, with source code published on GitHub.
Windows, macOS, Linux, Command line	Windows, macOS, Linux, Command line
Checks more than 400 bug patterns Integrations for Maven, Gradle, Ant and Eclipse All 4 strengths for SpotBugs Checks more than 400 bug patterns Integrations for Maven, Gradle, Ant and Eclipse Extensible with plugins such as find-sec-bugs Analyses code compiled for any Java version	Large built-in rule set for Java, with support for other languages Extensible with custom rules and rulesets All 4 strengths for PMD Large built-in rule set for Java, with support for other languages Extensible with custom rules and rulesets Runs on any desktop OS from the command line Frequent releases and an Eclipse plugin
Requires Java 11 or later to run Java bytecode only, not other languages	Command-line tool with no graphical interface of its own Rulesets need tuning to avoid noisy reports on large codebases
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License: LGPL-2.1-only	License not stated
No account needed	No account needed
Offline features available	Offline features available
Official website Full listing and sources Sources for SpotBugs spotbugs.github.io Catalog checked October 2, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Sources for PMD pmd.github.io Catalog checked October 1, 2026

“Not stated” means we have not confirmed it. Features can vary by device and plan.