GitHub is the social network for source code. The pull-request UX, the Actions ecosystem, and the gravity of the public contributor graph make it the right call for nearly every open-source project. We are not pretending otherwise.
Cuitty Code is a different shape. It is the Git pillar of a three-product platform — repositories, PRs, issues, CI/CD on Airflow + Dagger, Code Apps, a Code App Market, and a self-hostable Code Registry — that shares auth, audit, and ingest with Cuitty Persist and Cuitty Observe. The wire protocol is HTTP. The runners are yours. The instance is locked down at the edge.
This page is for engineering teams already weighing self-hosted Git against a SaaS dependency, and want a fair side-by-side to confirm.
Where Cuitty differs
| Capability | Cuitty Code | GitHub |
|---|---|---|
| App ecosystem | Code Apps are installed with SpiceDB-granular grants and run through Airflow. | GitHub Apps are powerful, but tied to GitHub-hosted marketplace and permission model. |
| Package registry | Self-hostable and cloud-hosted registry for npm, Cargo, OCI/Docker, and PyPI. | GitHub Packages is hosted by GitHub. |
| App and package visibility | Public, private, and organization visibility with explicit grants. | Public/private/org access follows GitHub account and package settings. |
| Markdown pages | User, org, app, registry, and package pages can use Git-backed markdown docs. | Repository and profile markdown are strong; registry/app pages are less controllable. |
| Workflow engine | Airflow orchestrates app installs, package publishes, scans, and transfers. | Actions orchestrates most automation inside GitHub. |
Feature parity
✓ supported · ~ partial · ✗ not supported. Notes link out to the relevant docs where useful.
| Capability | Cuitty Code | GitHub |
|---|---|---|
| Self-hostable Run the entire Git platform on your own infra. | Yes Docker Compose, Helm, single binary. | Partial
Partial
GitHub Enterprise Server, separate license. |
| CI runners (self-hosted) | Yes Airflow + Dagger; BYO fleet, no minutes meter. | Partial
Partial
Actions runners self-hostable; control plane is SaaS. |
| CI runners (hosted) | Yes Cloud tier ships managed runners with per-tier minutes. | Yes Hosted runners with per-minute billing. |
| Pull request review | Yes Inline review, required approvals, signed commits. | Yes Industry standard. |
| Issues + project boards | Yes Native issues; Yapture sync for cross-repo boards. | Yes GitHub Issues + Projects. |
| Public discoverability Will anonymous readers find your code on the open internet? | No Authenticated by default; mirror to a public host if needed. | Yes The world's largest public code graph. |
| Instance lockdown | Yes IP allowlists, SSO required, air-gapped option. | Partial
Partial
Enterprise SKU only; SaaS control plane. |
| Per-developer pricing transparency | Yes Flat per-seat, no per-repo or per-action add-ons. | Partial
Partial
Per-seat + minutes + storage + Copilot SKUs. |
| RBAC (fine-grained, project-scoped) | Yes SpiceDB-backed per-repo, per-branch, per-action. | Partial
Partial
Role presets; custom roles on Enterprise. |
| Notarized audit chain | Yes Every PR, merge, and CI run hashed into the chain. | Partial
Partial
Audit log API; not tamper-evident. |
| One login across code + data + observability + video | Yes Code, Persist, Observe, and Video share BetterAuth + SpiceDB. | No Separate from your data and APM tooling. |
When to choose GitHub
- Open-source projects that want maximum discoverability and contributor reach.
- Teams already deeply invested in the Actions marketplace and Copilot.
- You want the path of least resistance and SaaS-only is acceptable.
- Your security team is fine with a SaaS control plane sitting in front of your code.
When to choose Cuitty Code
- Regulated, air-gapped, or VPC-only environments where SaaS-hosted Git is not an option.
- You want self-hosted CI runners without paying for SaaS minutes you're not using.
- You need fine-grained, project-scoped RBAC across repos, PRs, and CI actions.
- You want one identity, one audit chain, and one ingest pipeline for code, storage, observability, and video renders.
Migration path
Mirror a GitHub repo into Cuitty Code
Cuitty Code accepts a one-time mirror import and keeps webhooks in sync. Start with read-only mirroring while you cut PR review over.
# Mirror an existing GitHub repo, then enable bidirectional webhooks.
cuitty code repo import \
--from "https://github.com/acme/api" \
--to "acme/api" \
--mirror
cuitty code repo webhooks enable \
--repo "acme/api" \
--source "github" \
--token "${GITHUB_PAT}"Verdict
Pick GitHub if open-source visibility and the world's largest contributor graph are the product. Pick Cuitty Code if you need self-hosted CI runners, instance lockdown, and one login across code, data, and observability.