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Head-to-head · Package Registries

RubyGems.org vs Conan

  • Updated Oct 2026
  • Both researched from official sources
  • 2 checks side by side
Higher score RubyGems.org #4 in Package Registries 8.7/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 0 of 1 features Visit RubyGems.org
Conan #6 in Package Registries 8.4/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 0 of 1 features Visit Conan

RubyGems.org leads on 0 checks, Conan on 0, and 2 are even. Who comes out ahead on the 2 yes/no, price and count checks where we have data for both products. The editor score weighs everything else too.

Our verdict

  • Highest scoreRubyGems.org · 8.7/10
  • Free planboth

RubyGems.org scores higher on our rubric for package registries: 8.7 against 8.4 out of 10; our editors rank them #4 and #6.

RubyGems.org is the better fit for free Ruby gem hosting. Conan is the better fit for native C and C++ dependencies.

  • RubyGems.org fits best

    Free Ruby gem hosting

  • Conan fits best

    Native C and C++ dependencies

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Side by side

Feature RubyGems.org 8.7/10 Visit ↗ Conan 8.4/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score 8.7 8.4
Ranking #4 in Package Registries #6 in Package Registries
Best for Free Ruby gem hosting Native C and C++ dependencies
Pricing model Free Free
Starting price Free plan Free
Free plan ✓ ✓
Free trial — —
Deployment Cloud Self-hosted, Desktop
Platforms Web Windows, macOS, Linux
Support Email, Docs Docs, Community
Integrations 2 integrations 6 integrations
Built for Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features RubyGems.org 0/1 · Conan 0/1
Private packages — Not checked yet
Specs
Package ecosystems Single Not checked yet
Package size limit Not checked yet Not checked yet
Storage limit Not checked yet Not checked yet
Download limit Not checked yet Not checked yet
Access controls Role_based Not checked yet
Our review
Pros
  • Free public hosting for publishing and discovering Ruby gems
  • Bundler and RubyGems CLI support package installation
  • MFA, scoped keys, roles, ownership controls, and version yanking
  • Precompiled binaries support multiple configurations and target platforms.
  • Lockfiles, profiles, revisions, and caching support reproducible workflows.
  • Integrates with CMake, Visual Studio/MSBuild, Docker, Meson, and more.
Cons
  • Public registry rather than private package hosting
  • Focused on the single Ruby gem ecosystem
  • Requires RubyGems or Bundler for the core package workflow
  • Workspaces are experimental and subject to breaking changes.
  • Its package model is focused on native C and C++ projects.
  • Hosted repository pricing belongs to separate JFrog Artifactory offerings.
Our verdict

RubyGems.org is a public registry and hosting service for Ruby packages, known as gems. It is designed for developers and teams that publish, discover, install, and maintain Ruby packages in an open package ecosystem. The service supports…

Read the review →

Conan is an open-source package manager for C and C++ projects. It helps teams define recipes, declare dependencies, build or obtain precompiled native binaries, and exchange packages through configurable remote repositories. Its support…

Read the review →
  1. RubyGems.orgPackage Registries 8.7Free plan
  2. ConanPackage Registries 8.4Free plan

Strengths and trade-offs

  • RubyGems.org — where it wins

    • Free public hosting for publishing and discovering Ruby gems
    • Bundler and RubyGems CLI support package installation
    • MFA, scoped keys, roles, ownership controls, and version yanking

    Where it doesn't

    • Public registry rather than private package hosting
    • Focused on the single Ruby gem ecosystem
    • Requires RubyGems or Bundler for the core package workflow

  • Conan — where it wins

    • Precompiled binaries support multiple configurations and target platforms.
    • Lockfiles, profiles, revisions, and caching support reproducible workflows.
    • Integrates with CMake, Visual Studio/MSBuild, Docker, Meson, and more.

    Where it doesn't

    • Workspaces are experimental and subject to breaking changes.
    • Its package model is focused on native C and C++ projects.
    • Hosted repository pricing belongs to separate JFrog Artifactory offerings.

More comparisons

All package registries comparisons → · Full ranking →

Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026

Last updated · How we research and update