Best Version Control Software in 2026
Updated
When project history, collaboration or large assets shape your workflow, version control choices can differ in how they manage and organize changes. Compare the versioning model with nested repositories, sparse checkout and file locking; large-file handling may also be important. Desktop platforms and self-hosted deployment help clarify setup options, while free-plan availability and paid-from pricing inform the cost comparison. Diversion, Unity Version Control and Apache Subversion are among the entries to consider. Match the listed capabilities to how your team works with repositories and the environments you already run.
Version Control Software, one module each.A lit port is something its maker publishes; 6 of 6 with a known API signal have a public API.
- 01 Diversion API yesFREE yesDOCS 7.4$25/mo
- 02 Unity Version Control API yesFREE yesDOCS 7.4Free
- 03 Apache Subversion API yesFREE yesDOCS 7.3Free
- 04 OpenText StarTeam API yesDOCS 7.0
- 05 Checkpoint API yesDOCS 6.9
- 06 SourceGear Vault API yesDOCS 6.9
- 07 Changes FREE yesDOCS 6.0Free
- 08 Darcs FREE yesDOCS 6.0Free
- 09 Git FREE yesDOCS 6.0Free
- 10 Magit FREE yesDOCS 6.0Free
- 11 Accessibility Test Framework for Android FREE yesDOCS 5.9Free
- 12 BitKeeper FREE yesDOCS 5.9Free
- 13 Breezy FREE yesDOCS 5.9Free
- 14 Concurrent Versions System FREE yesDOCS 5.9Free
- 15 Fossil FREE yesDOCS 5.9Free
- 16 GitButler FREE yesDOCS 5.9$5/mo
- 17 GitMac FREE yesDOCS 5.9$1/mo
- 18 Gitti FREE yesDOCS 5.9Free
- 19 Gittyup FREE yesDOCS 5.9Free
- 20 GitUI FREE yesDOCS 5.9Free
- 21 GitUp FREE yesDOCS 5.9Free
- 22 GNOME Remote Desktop FREE yesDOCS 5.9Free
- 23 lazygit FREE yesDOCS 5.9Free
- 24 Mercurial FREE yesDOCS 5.9Free
- 25 SnailGit FREE yesDOCS 5.9Free
Compare all 25 in a table
| # | Platform | Score | Free plan | From | Free plan | Paid from | Versioning model | Self-hosted deployment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Diversion | 7.4 | Free plan | $25/mo | Yes | 25 /user/mo | distributed | Yes |
| 2 | Unity Version Control | 7.4 | Free plan | Yes | hybrid | Yes | ||
| 3 | Apache Subversion | 7.3 | Free plan | Free | Yes | centralized | Yes | |
| 4 | OpenText StarTeam | 7.0 | centralized | Yes | ||||
| 5 | Checkpoint | 6.9 | Yes | |||||
| 6 | SourceGear Vault | 6.9 | Yes | centralized | Yes | |||
| 7 | Changes | 6.0 | Free plan | Free | Yes | distributed | ||
| 8 | Darcs | 6.0 | Free plan | Free | Yes | distributed | Yes | |
| 9 | Git | 6.0 | Free plan | Free | Yes | distributed | Yes | |
| 10 | Magit | 6.0 | Free plan | Free | Yes | distributed | No | |
| 11 | Accessibility Test Framework for Android | 5.9 | Free plan | Free | Yes | |||
| 12 | BitKeeper | 5.9 | Free plan | Free | Yes | distributed | Yes | |
| 13 | Breezy | 5.9 | Free plan | Free | Yes | distributed | Yes | |
| 14 | Concurrent Versions System | 5.9 | Free plan | Free | Yes | centralized | Yes | |
| 15 | Fossil | 5.9 | Free plan | Free | Yes | distributed | Yes | |
| 16 | GitButler | 5.9 | Free plan | $5/mo | Yes | distributed | ||
| 17 | GitMac | 5.9 | Free plan | $1/mo | Yes | distributed | No | |
| 18 | Gitti | 5.9 | Free plan | Free | Yes | distributed | ||
| 19 | Gittyup | 5.9 | Free plan | Free | distributed | |||
| 20 | GitUI | 5.9 | Free plan | Free | Yes | distributed | Yes | |
| 21 | GitUp | 5.9 | Free plan | Free | Yes | distributed | ||
| 22 | GNOME Remote Desktop | 5.9 | Free plan | Free | Yes | |||
| 23 | lazygit | 5.9 | Free plan | Free | Yes | distributed | No | |
| 24 | Mercurial | 5.9 | Free plan | Free | Yes | distributed | Yes | |
| 25 | SnailGit | 5.9 | Free plan | Free | distributed | No |
Is your platform on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored, and a sponsored row is labelled as paid.