OpenJDK Providers Comparison

Published by Tomas Zezula on

As a follow-up on my previous post about changes to Oracle Java, I am providing a quick comparison of OpenJDK providers. The goal is to give you a rough idea of what to expect in terms of alternatives to Oracle JDK: LTS, pricing, features etc. The list is likely incomplete and some details might change over time. I will do my best to keep it up-to-date.

Provider Free Builds from Source Free Binary Distributions Extended Updates* Commercial Support
AdoptOpenJDK Yes Yes Yes No
Azul No Yes Yes Yes
IBM No No Yes Yes
Mercurial Yes Yes No No
Oracle No Yes No** Yes
RedHat Yes Yes Yes Yes
SapMachine Yes Yes Yes Yes
Amazon – Corretto Yes Yes Yes No

* By “Extended Updates” I mean Public Updates beyond the 6-month release lifecycle.

** Oracle provides extended updates (and support) to paying customers, i.e. Oracle JDK only

AdoptOpenJDK

website: https://adoptopenjdk.net

  • free binary distributions: HotSpot, Eclipse OpenJ9
  • build your own JDK from sources
  • LTS releases of Java 8 to at least September 2023
  • LTS releases of Java 11 to at least September 2022
  • no paid support, but binaries are well tested and TCK-compliant
  • support details

Azul

website: https://www.azul.com

  • free binary distributions: Zulu (certified OpenJDK builds)
  • commercial distribution with improved performance: Zing
  • commercial support of Java 8 and other legacy releases
  • LTS much longer than Oracle’s, see their roadmap for direct comparison

Pricing:

  • annual subscription based on the number of systems (virtual or physical servers)
  • standard: $13k+ for 25 systems, up to $280k+ (unlimited)
  • premium: $38k for 100 systems, up to $340k+ (unlimited)
  • pricing details

IBM

website: https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/java/jdk

Mercurial

website: https://hg.openjdk.java.net

  • repository used by OpenJDK contributors
  • binaries, source files and change history

Oracle

website: http://jdk.java.net

  • free binary distributions: Oracle OpenJDK
  • LTS releases of Java 8 to January 2019 (December 2020 for personal use)
  • no LTS releases of Java 11
  • support details

Pricing:

  • Oracle charges per named user or processor – see definitions in the detailed price list (PDF)
  • per named user: $2.5 for up to 999 users, $1.25 for up to 49.999 users
  • per processor: $25 for up to 99 items, $12.50 for up to 19.999 items

RedHat

website: https://developers.redhat.com/products/openjdk/overview

  • free binary distributions (OpenJDK)
  • build your own from sources
  • LTS of Java 8 until June 2023
  • LTS of Java 11 until October 2024
  • support details

SapMachine

website: https://sap.github.io/SapMachine

Amazon

website: https://aws.amazon.com/corretto

  • latest addition – announced on 14 Nov 2018
  • free binary distributions: Amazon Corretto
  • build your own from sources
  • LTS
    • performance and security fixes every quarter at no-cost
    • Java 8 until at least June 2023
    • Java 11 until at least August 2024
  • in developer preview (as of time of this writing)
Categories: Java

Tomas Zezula

Hello! I'm a technology enthusiast with a knack for solving problems and a passion for making complex concepts accessible. My journey spans across software development, project management, and technical writing. I specialise in transforming rough sketches of ideas to fully launched products, all the while breaking down complex processes into understandable language. I believe a well-designed software development process is key to driving business growth. My focus as a leader and technical writer aims to bridge the tech-business divide, ensuring that intricate concepts are available and understandable to all. As a consultant, I'm eager to bring my versatile skills and extensive experience to help businesses navigate their software integration needs. Whether you're seeking bespoke software solutions, well-coordinated product launches, or easily digestible tech content, I'm here to make it happen. Ready to turn your vision into reality? Let's connect and explore the possibilities together.

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