CentOS Stream vs Solus
| CentOS Stream | Solus | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | No |
| Free trial | No | No |
| Paid from | Free | — |
| Open source | No | No |
| Platforms | Linux, self-hosted | Linux |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Device types | Servers, workstations, cloud instances, and containers | Personal computers (desktop and laptop hardware) |
| CPU architectures | CentOS Stream 10: AMD/Intel 64-bit (x86_64_v3), ARM 64-bit (ARMv8.0-A), IBM Power (POWER9), IBM Z (z14) | x86-64 (64-bit) |
| Support lifecycle | CentOS Stream 10 maintained until 2030; roughly five-year lifecycle. CentOS Stream 9 end-of-life: 2027-05-31. | Rolling release; homepage describes weekly tested updates. No fixed support duration specified. |
| Built-in management | DNF repositories and package management | Software Center; eopkg command-line package manager supports package operations and rollback |
| App compatibility | BaseOS and AppStream repositories; RPM packages; Xwayland compatibility layer for legacy X11 applications | Solus package repository; Flatpak preferred for third-party applications; Snap and AppImage also work |
| Deployment models | Physical-device installation media; cloud images; container images; Vagrant boxes | Installable ISO images for physical computers; can be installed alongside another operating system |
Both are listed in Best Operating Systems. On Inferse, CentOS Stream scores higher on our published basis.