Best Waf Alternatives in 2026
Updated
20 tools from build automation software ranked against Waf on the same published basis.
- 1Waf vs Nx
- 2Waf vs Bazel
- 3Waf vs Gradle
- 4Waf vs Pants
- 5Waf vs Rush
- 6Waf vs Xmake
- 7Waf vs Buck2
- 8Waf vs Meson
- 9Waf vs build2
- 10Waf vs moon
- 11Waf vs AWS CodeBuild
- 12Waf vs Please
- 13Waf vs Google Cloud Build
- 14Waf vs Apache Maven
- 15Waf vs Lage
- 16Waf vs Deb-o-Matic
- 17Waf vs Mill
- 18Waf vs SCons
- 19Waf vs Apache Ant
- 20Waf vs distcc
Waf alternatives compared
| # | Tool | Score | Free plan | From | Runs on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nx | 7.9 | Free plan | $29/mo | Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows |
| 2 | Bazel | 7.3 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 3 | Gradle | 7.3 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 4 | Pants | 7.3 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 5 | Rush | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 6 | Xmake | 7.2 | No | — | Android, iOS, Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 7 | Buck2 | 7.1 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows |
| 8 | Meson | 7.1 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 9 | build2 | 7.0 | No | — | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 10 | moon | 7.0 | No | — | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 11 | AWS CodeBuild | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, Web, Windows |
| 12 | Please | 6.7 | No | — | Linux, Mac |
| 13 | Google Cloud Build | 6.5 | No | $0.01/mo | API, Linux, Web |
| 14 | Apache Maven | 6.4 | No | — | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 15 | Lage | 6.3 | No | — | Linux |
| 16 | Deb-o-Matic | 6.2 | No | — | Linux |
| 17 | Mill | 6.2 | No | — | Windows, Mac, Linux |
| 18 | SCons | 6.2 | No | — | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 19 | Apache Ant | 6.1 | No | — | Windows, Mac, Linux |
| 20 | distcc | 6.1 | No | — | Linux, Mac, Windows |
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Questions about Waf alternatives
What is the best alternative to Waf?
Nx, number 1 in build automation software with a score of 7.9 out of 10. The others here: Bazel, Gradle, Pants and 16 more.
What is the best free alternative to Waf?
Nx is the best-ranked alternative with a free plan. 8 of the 20 alternatives here publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
How are these alternatives ranked?
Ranked on what each maker publishes, the fullest spec sheet first: how deeply the product is documented, the platforms it runs on, a free tier or trial to test it, and its standing.