GoReleaser
Automates building, packaging and publishing software releases, mainly for Go projects.
- Stars
- 16.1k
- Forks
- 1.1k
- Licence
- MIT
- Language
- Go
- Last update
- 4 days ago
- Type
- Dev tool
What it is
GoReleaser is a tool that handles the repetitive work of releasing software: building binaries, packaging them, and publishing them so people can download them. The README describes it as release engineering simplified and says it runs on your own machine or in CI/CD systems. Its primary language is Go, and the README also shows logos for Rust, Zig, TypeScript and Python, though the README does not detail what those languages support.
- Build a Go program for several operating systems and CPU types in one run
- Publish release archives such as the ones listed in the latest release
- Run releases automatically from a CI/CD pipeline
Great for
- Go developers who want to publish command-line tools or binaries for several operating systems
- Maintainers who run releases through GitHub Actions or another CI/CD system
- Teams that want a repeatable release process instead of manual steps
Not ideal for
- People who only need to run a program and not publish it, since the tool is aimed at the release step
- Projects that do not use CI/CD or a release workflow, because most of its value comes from automating releases
How to get it
- 1
See the README
Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/goreleaser/goreleaser - 2
Run it
- Follow the install guide at https://goreleaser.com/install/ for your machine
- Set up a release configuration for your project as described in the docs at https://goreleaser.com
- Run a release using the commands in the documentation
- 3
Get the most out of it
- Use the CI/CD guide at https://goreleaser.com/ci/ to automate releases
- Follow the documentation at https://goreleaser.com for configuration options
- Join the GitHub Discussions or the Telegram channel for community help
Downloads
Strengths
- Widely referenced project with 16127 stars and an MIT license
- Documentation is hosted at goreleaser.com with install and CI guides linked from the README
- Has public community channels and a CII Best Practices badge in the README
Trade-offs
- The README is short and points mostly to external documentation for details
- Its strongest fit is Go projects, and the README does not spell out support for other languages
- Some features and setup details can only be confirmed on the external docs site
How it compares
| Project | Stars | Type | Level | Updated | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| goreleaser (this) | 16.1k | Dev tool | intermediate | 4 days ago | Go developers who want to publish command-line tools or binaries for several operating systems |
| semantic-release | 24.1k | Dev tool | intermediate | 6 days ago | Maintainers of JavaScript packages who already use a CI service |
| act | 72.5k | Dev tool | intermediate | 5 days ago | Developers who edit .github/workflows files and want faster feedback than commit-and-push cycles |
| lerna | 36k | Dev tool | intermediate | 5 days ago | JavaScript or TypeScript teams maintaining several related npm packages in one repository |
| gitea | 58.8k | App | intermediate | 4 days ago | Teams that want to host their own code instead of using a public cloud service |
| UniGetUI | 26.8k | App | beginner | 4 days ago | Windows users who already use WinGet, Scoop or Chocolatey and want one place to manage them |
Stats synced from GitHub. The assessment above was drafted with AI from the project's README on 2026-10-29 and may miss recent changes — check the README before relying on a command. MIT licence: free to use, modify and distribute, including commercially, as long as you keep the copyright notice.