Closest to Terraform
OpenTofu is an MPL-2.0 community fork under the Linux Foundation. It uses the same HCL language and providers and is a drop-in replacement for Terraform 1.5.x and most of 1.6.x, backed by several infrastructure companies.
Alternatives / Terraform
3 open-source alternatives
3 Best Open Source Terraform Alternatives in 2026
Looking for an open source Terraform alternative? We compared 3 open source infrastructure-as-code tools by license, language, provider support, and maintenance. OpenTofu is the direct fork, Pulumi uses general-purpose languages, and Nitric declares infrastructure from application code.
Written by Maxime DERAME
Last updated:
Best Terraform alternatives at a glance
| Alternative | Best for | License |
|---|---|---|
| OpenTofu | Drop-in fork of Terraform | MPL-2.0 |
| Pulumi | Infrastructure in real programming languages | Apache-2.0 |
| Nitric | Infrastructure from application code | Apache-2.0 |
How we chose these Terraform alternatives
We looked for open-source tools that provision infrastructure declaratively like Terraform. We verified each project's license, recent activity, stars, and supported clouds in its repository. See our methodology for the full criteria.
Different approaches
Pulumi lets you write infrastructure in TypeScript, Python, Go, C#, or Java, with an Automation API and secrets management, and supports AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, Kubernetes, and many other providers. Nitric is a backend framework that declares infrastructure from application code and deploys it through pluggable automation.
Important: trade-offs
OpenTofu may lag behind newer Terraform features. Pulumi Cloud, the managed state service, is paid, though other state backends exist. Nitric supports AWS, Google Cloud, and Azure out of the box, and its last commit was in February 2026.
License details
OpenTofu is MPL-2.0. Pulumi and Nitric are Apache-2.0.
Maintenance status
OpenTofu and Pulumi had commits within days of this update.
Why look for a Terraform alternative?
Terraform moved from an open-source license to the Business Source License in 2023, which limits use in competing products and left some teams wanting a community-governed option. The alternatives keep infrastructure as code open, with different trade-offs in language and compatibility.
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
nitric.io
Nitric is an Apache-2.0 cloud application framework where developers declare APIs, databases, queues, topics, secrets, and storage in code while provider plugins handle provisioning.
2K123Apache-2.0Self-hosted
Pricing: Free and open source under Apache-2.0; cloud-provider costs apply.
- Multi-cloud
- Infrastructure from code
- APIs, databases, storage, queues, and local development
- Not a hosted BaaS
- Requires backend development
- No Supabase-style admin database
Compare Terraform alternatives
| Alternative | Type | License | Language | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenTofu | IaC tool | MPL-2.0 | HCL | Existing Terraform users |
| Pulumi | IaC tool | Apache-2.0 | TypeScript, Python, Go, C#, Java | Developer teams |
| Nitric | Backend framework | Apache-2.0 | Several languages | Cloud-portable apps |
Which one should you choose?
Want a drop-in replacement with the same files
OpenTofu reads existing HCL and uses the same providers, as a community-governed fork.
Want to write infrastructure in code you already know
Pulumi supports TypeScript, Python, Go, C#, and Java with an Automation API.
Want infrastructure derived from your app
Nitric declares infrastructure from application code and runs offline for local development.