act

MIT run GitHub Actions locally in Docker

DevOps / CI/CD · OSS/MIT · 72.4k

Reviewed 2026-09-13 · last push 2026-08-09 · repo checked 2026-10-19

What's Good

MIT. nektos/act. Reads `.github/workflows`, pulls/builds images, runs jobs via Docker with GHA-shaped env/filesystem. Fast local iteration and a Makefile-shaped task runner that reuses the same workflows. Homepage nektosact.com; source github.com/nektos/act.

The Catch

Vs hosted GitHub Actions and Woodpecker (self-host container CI): act is a *local emulator*, not a forge runner fleet and not a replacement for GitHub-hosted minutes. Event payload fidelity is incomplete; secrets, service containers, and some actions still surprise. Needs a Docker engine.

Verdict

MIT local Actions runner. Free forever; debug the workflow before you burn a push.

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