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CentOS

13.7K
9K
+ 1
53
Debian

16K
11K
+ 1
164
Ubuntu

78.7K
58K
+ 1
468

Centos vs Debian vs Ubuntu: What are the differences?

Differences between CentOS and Debian and Ubuntu

CentOS, Debian, and Ubuntu are three popular Linux distributions with their own unique features and advantages. Here are the key differences between them:

  1. Package Management: CentOS uses the Yellowdog Updater, Modified (YUM) package manager, while Debian and Ubuntu use the Advanced Package Tool (APT). YUM allows easier management of packages and dependencies on CentOS, while APT provides a more extensive package ecosystem with advanced features such as package pinning on Debian and Ubuntu.

  2. Release Cycle: CentOS is known for its long-term support (LTS) releases, which means it provides longer stability with fewer updates. On the other hand, Debian follows a stable release cycle with periodic updates, while Ubuntu has regular biannual releases with long-term support (LTS) versions available.

  3. Community and Support: CentOS is backed by a collaboration of individuals and companies, including the CentOS Project and Red Hat. Debian has a large and diverse community with strong developer support, and Ubuntu benefits from Canonical's professional support and a vast community. Support options and the size of the community can vary, impacting the availability and quality of assistance and updates.

  4. Default Package Selection: CentOS focuses on stability for server environments and therefore includes a minimal set of packages by default. Debian offers a comprehensive set of packages out-of-the-box, suitable for a wide range of applications. Ubuntu falls between the two, providing a good balance of essential packages and additional software.

  5. System Configuration: CentOS relies on the YUM configuration files and CentOS-specific tools for package management and system configuration. Debian uses text-based configuration files and its own set of tools, while Ubuntu builds upon Debian but generally includes more user-friendly tools and graphical interfaces for system configuration.

  6. Security Features: CentOS's primary focus is server security and stability, and it benefits from Red Hat's commitment to security updates. Debian emphasizes stability but also provides regular security updates. Ubuntu puts a strong emphasis on security and ease of use, providing frequent security updates and built-in firewall configuration tools.

In summary, CentOS offers stability and long-term support, Debian provides a wide range of packages and a stable release cycle, and Ubuntu combines user-friendly features with regular releases and security updates. The choice depends on specific requirements, preferences, and the intended use case.

Decisions about CentOS, Debian, and Ubuntu
Michaël SCHERER
Fullstack Dev at Synovo Group · | 10 upvotes · 44.1K views
Chose
UbuntuUbuntu
over
WindowsWindows

Ubuntu always let people do what they want to do, it pushes its users to know what they are doing, what they want and helps them learn what they ignore.

Ubuntu is simple, works out-of-the-box after installation and has a incredibly huge community behind.

Ubuntu is lightweight and open, in the way, that the user has access to free AND efficient applications (most of the time, without ads) and, even if learning its folder structure is challenging, once done, you are really able to call yourself "someone who knows what is in your computer".

Windows, in comparison, is heavy, tends to make decision for you and always enable tracking application by default. grr

It has a simple user interface, of course, but on the stability point of view, it is hard to compete with something simpler (even with less features).

Personal preference : I prefer something simple that works 99% of the time, than a full-featured auto-magical system that works 50% of the time (and ask if the good version of the driver is really installed...)

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Dimelo Waterson

Coming from a Debian-based Linux background, using the Ubuntu base image for my Docker containers was a natural choice. However, the overhead, even on the impressively-slimmed Hub images, was hard to justify. Seeking to create images that were "just right" in size, without unused packages or dependencies, I made the switch to Alpine.

Alpine's modified BusyBox has a surprising amount of functionality, and the package repository contains plenty of muslc-safe versions of commonly-used packages. It's been a valuable exercise in doing more with less, and, as Alpine is keen to point out, an image with fewer packages makes for a more sustainable environment with a smaller attack surface.

My only regret is that Alpine's documentation leaves a lot to be desired.

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Michael Fogassy

I have used libvirt in every Linux hypervisor deployment I do. I frequently deploy RHEL or CentOS hypervisor servers with libvirt as the VMM of choice. It's installable via the guided setup for EL-based Linux distros, it uses minimal resources and overhead, integrates seamlessly with KVM and Qemu, and provides powerful CLI for advanced users and experts looking for automated deployments, or via VirtManager in your favorite Linux desktop environment. Best used with Linux VMs, it allows KVM and QEMU direct hardware virtualization access.

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Jaron Viëtor

Using Arch Linux for our systems and servers means getting the latest technology and fixes early, as well as early warnings for potential future breakage in other (slower) distributions. It's been easy to maintain, easy to automate, and most importantly: easy to debug.

While our software target is every recent Linux distribution, using Arch internally ensured that everyone understands the full system without any knowledge gaps.

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Ubuntu is much more faster over Windows and helps to get software and other utilities easier and within a short span of time compared to Windows.

Ubuntu helps to get robustness and resiliency over Windows. Ubuntu runs faster than Windows on every computer that I have ever tested. LibreOffice (Ubuntu's default office suite) runs much faster than Microsoft Office on every computer that I have ever tested.

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Jerome/Zen Quah
Chose
UbuntuUbuntu
over
CentOSCentOS

Global familiarity, free, widely used, and as a debian distro feels more comfortable when rapidly switching between local macOS and remote command lines.

CentOS does boast quite a few security/stability improvements, however as a RHEL-based distro, differs quite significantly in the command line and suffers from slightly less frequent package updates. (Could be a good or bad thing depending on your use-case and if it is public facing)

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Simon Aronsson
Developer Advocate at k6 / Load Impact · | 7 upvotes · 285.2K views

At the moment of the decision, my desktop was the primary place I did work. Due to this, I can't have it blow up on me while I work. While Arch is interesting and powerful, Ubuntu offers (at least for me) a lot more stability and lets me focus on other things than maintaining my own OS installation.

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Pros of CentOS
Pros of Debian
Pros of Ubuntu
  • 16
    Stable
  • 9
    Free to use
  • 9
    Reliable
  • 6
    Has epel packages
  • 6
    Good support
  • 5
    Great Community
  • 2
    I've moved from gentoo to centos
  • 54
    Massively supported
  • 50
    Stable
  • 21
    Reliable
  • 9
    Aptitude
  • 8
    Customizable
  • 8
    It is free
  • 8
    Turnkey linux use it
  • 6
    Works on all architectures
  • 230
    Free to use
  • 96
    Easy setup for testing discord bot
  • 57
    Gateway Linux Distro
  • 54
    Simple interface
  • 9
    Don't need driver installation in most cases
  • 6
    Open Source
  • 6
    Many active communities
  • 3
    Software Availability
  • 3
    Easy to custom
  • 2
    Many flavors/distros based on ubuntu
  • 1
    Lightweight container base OS
  • 1
    Great OotB Linux Shell Experience

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Cons of CentOS
Cons of Debian
Cons of Ubuntu
  • 1
    Yum is a horrible package manager
  • 10
    Old versions of software
  • 2
    Can be difficult to set up on vanilla Debian
  • 5
    Demanding system requirements
  • 4
    Adds overhead and unnecessary complexity over Debian
  • 2
    Snapd installed by default
  • 1
    Systemd

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What is CentOS?

The CentOS Project is a community-driven free software effort focused on delivering a robust open source ecosystem. For users, we offer a consistent manageable platform that suits a wide variety of deployments. For open source communities, we offer a solid, predictable base to build upon, along with extensive resources to build, test, release, and maintain their code.

What is Debian?

Debian systems currently use the Linux kernel or the FreeBSD kernel. Linux is a piece of software started by Linus Torvalds and supported by thousands of programmers worldwide. FreeBSD is an operating system including a kernel and other software.

What is Ubuntu?

Ubuntu is an ancient African word meaning ‘humanity to others’. It also means ‘I am what I am because of who we all are’. The Ubuntu operating system brings the spirit of Ubuntu to the world of computers.

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What are some alternatives to CentOS, Debian, and Ubuntu?
Fedora
Fedora is a Linux-based operating system that provides users with access to the latest free and open source software, in a stable, secure and easy to manage form. Fedora is the largest of many free software creations of the Fedora Project. Because of its predominance, the word "Fedora" is often used interchangeably to mean both the Fedora Project and the Fedora operating system.
Amazon Linux
The Amazon Linux AMI is a supported and maintained Linux image provided by Amazon Web Services for use on Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2).
openSUSE
The openSUSE project is a worldwide effort that promotes the use of Linux everywhere. openSUSE creates one of the world's best Linux distributions, working together in an open, transparent and friendly manner as part of the worldwide Free and Open Source Software community.
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A clone of the operating system Unix, written from scratch by Linus Torvalds with assistance from a loosely-knit team of hackers across the Net. It aims towards POSIX and Single UNIX Specification compliance.
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