Important: different job
OpenTofu and Pulumi create cloud resources. Puppet continuously applies configuration on existing servers, so you may combine a provisioning tool with Ansible or a similar tool.
Alternatives / Puppet
2 open-source alternatives
2 Best Open Source Puppet Alternatives in 2026
Looking for an open source Puppet alternative? We compared 2 open source infrastructure-as-code tools by license and approach. OpenTofu and Pulumi provision infrastructure, but neither is a configuration management agent that enforces state on servers like Puppet.
Written by Maxime DERAME
Last updated:
Best Puppet alternatives at a glance
| Alternative | Best for | License |
|---|---|---|
| OpenTofu | Community fork of Terraform | MPL-2.0 |
| Pulumi | Infrastructure in real languages | Apache-2.0 |
How we chose these Puppet alternatives
We looked for open-source tools that automate infrastructure like Puppet. We verified each project's license, recent activity, stars, and provider support in its repository. See our methodology for the full criteria.
The tools
OpenTofu is an MPL-2.0 community fork of Terraform under the Linux Foundation and a drop-in replacement for Terraform 1.5.x and most of 1.6.x. Pulumi defines infrastructure in TypeScript, Python, Go, C#, and Java across 60+ providers, with an Automation API and secrets management.
License details
OpenTofu is MPL-2.0. Pulumi is Apache-2.0.
Maintenance status
Both had commits within days of this update.
Why look for a Puppet alternative?
Puppet moved its main distribution to a commercial model, which pushed some users to look for community-governed tools. Provisioning tools replace part of the workflow, but not the continuous configuration enforcement.
opentofu.org
OpenTofu is an MPL-2.0 fork of Terraform created after HashiCorp changed Terraform's license. It is a drop-in replacement for Terraform 1.5.x and most of 1.6.x, uses the same HCL language and providers, and is backed by several infrastructure companies.
30.5K1.4KMPL-2.0CLI tool
Pricing: Free and open source.
- Drop-in for Terraform workflows
- Same HCL and provider ecosystem
- Open governance
- Newer Terraform features may not be matched
- Terraform Cloud features need other tools
pulumi.com
Pulumi is an Apache-2.0 infrastructure-as-code tool that uses TypeScript, Python, Go, C#, and Java instead of a domain-specific language. It deploys to AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, Kubernetes, and many other providers. Pulumi Cloud, the managed state service, is paid, though other backends exist.
25.8K1.5KApache-2.0CLI tool
Pricing: Free open-source CLI; Pulumi Cloud has paid tiers.
- Real programming languages
- Many providers
- Automation API and secrets management
- Pulumi Cloud is a paid service
- Steeper for teams used to HCL
Compare Puppet alternatives
| Alternative | Type | License | Language | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenTofu | IaC tool | MPL-2.0 | HCL | Cloud provisioning |
| Pulumi | IaC tool | Apache-2.0 | TypeScript, Python, Go, C#, Java | Developer teams |
Which one should you choose?
Want declarative provisioning with a community fork
OpenTofu uses HCL and the Terraform provider ecosystem under a community-governed project.
Want to write infrastructure in code
Pulumi supports mainstream languages and 60+ providers.