Octopus vs PullApprove
Octopus
octopus-review.aiPullApprove
pullapprove.comSide by side
| Figure | Octopus | PullApprove |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $4/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | — |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 5 | 4 |
| Spec score · Code review software | 8.6 (#11) | 8.0 (#29) |
| CLI | The octp command-line client can trigger reviews, index repositories, query the codebase, manage knowledge documents, and report usage. | The PullApprove CLI can initialize, validate, test, and analyze coverage for code review configurations. |
| Product | Octopus indexes a codebase for context and automatically reviews pull requests, posting severity-rated findings as inline comments. | PullApprove is a framework for managing human code review and combines code ownership with approval requirements. |
| Self-hosting | Self-hosting uses Docker Compose with PostgreSQL, Qdrant, and a prebuilt ghcr.io/octopusreview/octopus-selfhost image. | PullApprove 5 is distributed as a Docker image for linux/amd64 and requires PostgreSQL 16 or later. |
| Support | The free cloud tier includes community support, and the maker invites users to report issues and contribute through GitHub. | The support page says messages are answered by email, usually within a business day, with a stated response time under 24 hours. |
Plans
Octopus
- Cloud Free TierFree
- Self-HostedFree
- Self-HostedFree
- Cloud Usage-BasedPriced on request
- Cloud Usage-BasedPrice not published
PullApprove
- Team$4 a month
- Organization$6 a month
- Business$7,500 a year
- EnterprisePriced on request
In their own words
Octopus
Octopus indexes a codebase and uses that context to review pull requests automatically. When a pull request opens, it retrieves related indexed code through vector search and sends the changes and context to a configured language model. Findings receive severity ratings and appear as inline comments. The GitHub integration also reviews updates, posts check runs, and can create issues from findings. Octopus supports GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, and Forgejo, and includes source-cited codebase chat plus a CLI for reviews, context queries, and repository checks. Teams can use knowledge-base documents to guide reviews, with rules, repositories, and reviewer settings shared across an organization. AI options include providers such as Anthropic Claude, OpenAI, Google, xAI Grok, Alibaba Qwen, Cohere, and OpenRouter. It can be self-hosted with Docker Compose, PostgreSQL, and Qdrant, with optional local models and embeddings through Ollama. The cloud service stores review and indexing data; findings persist through the PR lifetime and 90 days after closure, while indexed embeddings remain as long as a repository is connected. Free self-hosted and cloud tiers are listed. Live team telemetry requires a paid organization.
PullApprove
PullApprove has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.