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Tech riderRev. 4 Oct 2026

Ridgepole

Ch 186.4of 32 Database Migration Tools
  1. 1Runs onself-hosted
  2. 2CostsFree plan
  3. 3Schema diffYes
  4. 4Drift detectionYes
  5. 5Self-hosted optionYes
  6. 6Migration formatcode
6 lines stated Written from the maker's own pages: github.com
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The Ridgepole homepage

Overview

Ridgepole is ranked #18 of 32 in database migration tools on Specifiction. It runs on Self-hosted. There is a free plan.

Ridgepole plans and pricing

All plans
Ridgepole Free MIT-licensed Ruby gem · SQLite is not supported · table partitioning is not supported github.com · 4 Oct 2026

Compared on database migration tools

Schema diff
Yesgithub.com
Drift detection
Yesgithub.com
Self-hosted option
Yesgithub.com
Migration format
codegithub.com

Facts

Purpose
Ridgepole manages database schemas by defining them with Rails DSL and updating the database to match.github.com · 4 Oct 2026
Schema workflow
It can export a database schema to a Schemafile, compare schema definitions, and apply changes.github.com · 4 Oct 2026
Dry run
The --dry-run option previews schema changes before applying them.github.com · 4 Oct 2026
Schema features
The README demonstrates table and column renames, foreign keys, check constraints, indexes, generated columns, and SQL execution.github.com · 4 Oct 2026
Database support
The README documents MySQL and PostgreSQL examples and states that SQLite is not supported.github.com · 4 Oct 2026
Rails compatibility
The README says Ridgepole v3.1.0 supports Rails 8.1 and v3.0.0 supports Rails 8.0.github.com · 4 Oct 2026
Installation
Ridgepole can be added to an application's Gemfile or installed with gem install ridgepole.github.com · 4 Oct 2026
Distribution
Ridgepole is distributed as a Ruby gem and the repository identifies its license as MIT.github.com · 4 Oct 2026
Table deletion
Dropping tables is skipped by default in Ridgepole v1.0 and later; the README says to pass --drop-table to enable it.github.com · 4 Oct 2026
Partitioning
The README states that partitioning is no longer supported from Ridgepole v1.1.0.github.com · 4 Oct 2026
Rename behavior
When renamed_from is used on a table, other changes to that table are not detected in the same migration and must be applied in a separate step.github.com · 4 Oct 2026
Database compatibility detail
The README advises matching check constraint expressions to the database's exported form to avoid unnecessary migrations.github.com · 4 Oct 2026

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Where it ranks on Specifiction

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Sources