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age alternatives (2026)

age: BSD-3 file encryption. Free forever; pair with SOPS when the team outgrows ad-hoc scripts.

Its Catch: Not a password manager or key directory.

Below: 8 free or free-tier tools from the same category (security tools), free and open source first, then the closest match by shared tags. Each keeps its own Catch.

  1. 1.TrivyApache-2.0 all-in-one vuln/IaC/secret/SBOM scanner; no paid tier

    Free / OSS · Apache-2.0 · 38.5k GitHub stars

    VerdictApache-2.0 security scanner. Fully free CLI; Aqua Platform is the paid cousin.

    CatchCLI/CI scanner — not Aqua Platform management UI/RBAC/policy SaaS. Vs Grype/Snyk: Aqua OSS default with broad target surface; Aqua Inc monetizes a separate commercial platform. You still triage and patch.

  2. 2.GitleaksMIT secret scanner for git/dirs/stdin; CLI free, org Action needs free key

    Free / OSS · OSS/MIT · 30.1k GitHub stars

    VerdictMIT secrets CLI. Free forever; org Action wants free license key.

    CatchMaintainer marks feature-complete (security patches; focus shifting to Betterleaks). Official Action for GitHub org repos needs a free license key from gitleaks.io — personal accounts exempt. Not a full ASVS/SAST suite. False positives need allowlists.

  3. 3.GrypeApache-2.0 SBOM-first vulnerability scanner from Anchore; free CLI

    Free / OSS · Apache-2.0 · 13k GitHub stars

    VerdictApache-2.0 SBOM vuln scanner. Free CLI; Enterprise is the paid cousin.

    CatchVuln scanner — not Trivy's IaC/secrets swiss-army, not Cosign signing, not Anchore Enterprise governance UI. You still triage CVEs. Anchore monetizes Enterprise separately.

  4. 4.direnvMIT per-directory env loader for any shell

    Free / OSS · OSS/MIT · 15.5k GitHub stars

    VerdictMIT directory env. Free forever; allow once per project and stop polluting $PATH.

    CatchEach new .envrc needs `direnv allow`. Not a secrets vault — still files on disk.

  5. 5.AtuinMIT magical shell history with optional E2E sync

    Free / OSS · OSS/MIT · 32k GitHub stars

    VerdictMIT shell history. Free forever CLI + self-host sync; hosted sync stays optional.

    CatchShell history tool — not a prompt (Starship), not a jumper (zoxide), not Dotfiles sync. Desktop/Hub team features are a separate product line (Hub not self-hostable). Atuin AI is free while in testing — treat that as temporary.

  6. 6.SOPSMPL-2.0 encrypts config values; keys stay readable

    Free / OSS · MPL-2.0 · 23.4k GitHub stars

    VerdictMPL-2.0 secrets-in-git. Free forever; use age underneath when you want KMS-free recipients.

    CatchVs age (file encryption) and Infisical (secrets product): SOPS is the *structured config encryptor*, not a password manager and not a hosted vault UI. You still design key distribution, rotation, and who can decrypt in CI. Binary mode encrypts whole files when structure does not apply.

  7. 7.SemgrepLGPL-2.1 SAST engine; Free Edition caps repos/contributors

    Free / OSS · LGPL-2.1 · 17.1k GitHub stars

    VerdictLGPL SAST. Free forever CLI; Free Edition SaaS for small teams; Teams when AppSec wants the paid platform.

    CatchVs Trivy/Gitleaks (scanners): Semgrep is SAST/SCA-shaped AppSec, not container CVE inventory or git-history secret regex alone. Teams starts ~$30/contributor/mo per product; Secrets is a separate SKU. Free Edition caps contributors/repos — OSS CLI without the SaaS seat is the uncapped escape hatch.

  8. 8.resticBSD-2-Clause encrypted, deduplicated backups to many backends

    Free / OSS · BSD-2-Clause · 36.7k GitHub stars

    VerdictBSD-2-Clause backup CLI. Free forever encryption + dedup; pay only for where the blobs live.

    CatchYou still own the repository password (lose it = lose data) and the backend bill/ops. Not a SaaS backup console with support SLAs. Scheduling, monitoring, and restore drills are on you. Complementary to object stores (Garage), not a replacement for app-level PITR.

FAQ

What are the best free alternatives to age?
Trivy, Gitleaks, Grype, direnv, Atuin. All are reviewed on Stack Gems in the same category (security tools); 8 free or open source.
What is the catch with age?
Not a password manager or key directory.
Is there an open-source alternative to age?
Yes: Trivy (Apache-2.0), Gitleaks (OSS/MIT), Grype (Apache-2.0), direnv (OSS/MIT).

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