Best Waf Alternatives in 2026
Updated
20 platforms from build automation software ranked against Waf on the same published basis.
- 1Waf vs Nx
- 2Waf vs Gradle
- 3Waf vs Pants
- 4Waf vs Bazel
- 5Waf vs Rush
- 6Waf vs Buck2
- 7Waf vs AWS CodeBuild
- 8Waf vs build2
- 9Waf vs moon
- 10Waf vs Xmake
- 11Waf vs Please
- 12Waf vs Google Cloud Build
- 13Waf vs Apache Maven
- 14Waf vs Apache Ant
- 15Waf vs distcc
- 16Waf vs Meson
- 17Waf vs Mill
- 18Waf vs MSBuild
- 19Waf vs Rake
- 20Waf vs SCons
Waf alternatives compared
| # | Platform | Score | Free plan | From | Runs on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nx | 7.9 | Free plan | $29/mo | Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows |
| 2 | Gradle | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 3 | Pants | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 4 | Bazel | 7.1 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 5 | Rush | 7.0 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 6 | Buck2 | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows |
| 7 | AWS CodeBuild | 6.8 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, Web, Windows |
| 8 | build2 | 6.7 | No | — | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 9 | moon | 6.7 | No | — | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 10 | Xmake | 6.6 | No | — | Android, iOS, Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 11 | Please | 6.4 | No | — | Linux, Mac |
| 12 | Google Cloud Build | 6.3 | No | $0.01/mo | API, Linux, Web |
| 13 | Apache Maven | 6.2 | No | — | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 14 | Apache Ant | 6.0 | No | — | Windows, Mac, Linux |
| 15 | distcc | 6.0 | No | — | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 16 | Meson | 6.0 | No | — | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 17 | Mill | 6.0 | No | — | Windows, Mac, Linux |
| 18 | MSBuild | 6.0 | No | — | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 19 | Rake | 6.0 | No | — | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 20 | SCons | 6.0 | No | — | Linux, Mac, Windows |
Make your platform an alternative to Waf
See the priceThe sponsored alternative slot on this page is labelled and never changes the order above.
Questions about Waf alternatives
What is the best alternative to Waf?
Nx, number 1 in build automation software with a score of 7.9 out of 10. The others here: Gradle, Pants, Bazel and 16 more.
What is the best free alternative to Waf?
Nx is the best-ranked alternative with a free plan. 7 of the 20 alternatives here publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
How are these alternatives ranked?
Ranked on how quickly a newcomer can get going: documentation depth, a free tier or trial, and the platforms it runs on. Paid placements never change a rank.