Salt comparisons
Salt is compared head-to-head with Puppet, AWS Systems Manager State Manager and Google Cloud VM Manager and more: 7 head-to-heads in Configuration Management Tools, each with the specs and prices we checked.
Salt head-to-head
- Salt vs Puppet
- Salt vs AWS Systems Manager State Manager
- Salt vs Google Cloud VM Manager
- Salt vs OpenText Server Automation
- Salt vs Rudder
- Salt vs Uyuni
- Salt vs CFEngine
Salt vs each of them
| # | Tool | Free plan | Paid from | Deployment model | Agent model | Drift detection | Patch management | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | Salt | Yes | Free | Self_hosted | Both | Yes | Yes | 8.6 |
| 1 | Puppet | Yes | Self_hosted | Both | Yes | Yes | 9.3 | |
| 2 | AWS Systems Manager State Manager | Yes | Free | Cloud | Agent_based | Yes | Yes | 9.1 |
| 3 | Google Cloud VM Manager | Yes | $0.003/device usage-based | Cloud | Agent_based | Yes | Yes | 9.0 |
| 4 | OpenText Server Automation | Self_hosted | Both | Yes | Yes | 8.8 | ||
| 5 | Rudder | Yes | Self_hosted | Agent_based | Yes | Yes | 8.7 | |
| 7 | Uyuni | Free | Both | Both | Yes | Yes | 8.5 | |
| 8 | CFEngine | Yes | Self_hosted | Agent_based | Yes | Yes | 8.4 |
Compare Salt with any configuration management tool
These are the matchups our editors wrote up. The compare tool pairs Salt with any other product in Configuration Management Tools — and up to four at once — from the same checked specs.
Compare Salt with any tool side by side →
Every configuration management tools head-to-head →
Our full Salt verdict, pricing and fact sheet →
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Compared by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Last updated · How we research and update