Depfu vs Renovate

Depfu is an online service for keeping software dependencies up to date. It connects to GitHub and GitLab repositories through their APIs and opens pull requests with updates and related information; users decide whether to merge them. Supported ecosystems are Ruby Bundler, JavaScript npm, Yarn and pnpm, PHP Composer, and Elixir Hex. Update settings can be configured individually, grouped into recurring requests, or limited to security updates. Security vulnerability updates take priority, and Depfu syncs with open-source databases and GitHub security alerts. The service keeps no more than seven dependency update pull requests open at once. Depfu says it accesses repositories through provider APIs without cloning them, and that traffic to and inside its service is encrypted with SSL/TLS. Enterprise runs on customer infrastructure with GitHub Enterprise or self-hosted GitLab, keeping code in the customer’s network. That deployment requires a Linux machine or VM supporting Docker, with at least two CPU cores and 8 GB of RAM. A free plan covers public and personal account repositories. Paid plans start at $29 a month; a 21-day trial is listed.

Renovate detects outdated dependencies and opens pull requests with updates, reducing manual package maintenance. It supports more than 90 package managers, including npm, Maven, NuGet, Python, Go, Docker, Terraform, and GitHub Actions, across languages and containers. Pull requests can show package age, adoption, passing rates, and changelogs. Repository scans run on configurable schedules, while webhooks can trigger jobs after repository events. A renovate.json file controls dependencies, scheduling, and grouping. Merge Confidence workflows group and filter updates and can support automatic merging for high-confidence ratings. Pull requests trigger CI/CD workflows for checks before merging. Repository integrations include GitHub, Bitbucket, GitLab, Azure DevOps, AWS CodeCommit, Gitea, Forgejo, and Gerrit, with availability depending on edition. Community and CLI plans are free; Enterprise costs $250 a year, billed per developer per year, and adds dedicated support. Cloud and self-hosted deployment options are listed.