What are the top 3 CentOS al­ter­na­tives?

Since CentOS Linux 7 reached EOL and CentOS Linux support ended in summer 2024, users need a suitable al­ter­na­tive. Options include RHEL and the two free dis­tri­b­u­tions Rocky Linux and AlmaLinux. All three CentOS re­place­ments offer stability, security and long-term support.

Key Takeaways ⓘ

CentOS 7 has been un­sup­port­ed since June 30, 2024. These are the al­ter­na­tives to consider:

• RHEL: The com­mer­cial “original”, with long main­te­nance cycles and pro­fes­sion­al support.
• Rocky Linux: The free, community-driven, un­of­fi­cial successor, with security updates for version 9 until 2032 and for version 10 until 2035.
• AlmaLinux: The free al­ter­na­tive that is ABI-com­pat­i­ble with RHEL, with security updates for version 9 until 2032 and for version 10 until 2035.
• Migration: CentOS 7 can be migrated to AlmaLinux 8 with the ELevate project, while a direct migration from CentOS 7 to Rocky Linux is not supported.

All three al­ter­na­tives are stable, secure and supported for the long term.

CentOS 7: End of support and what it means for users

The CentOS platform was released in 2004 by the CentOS project as a binary-com­pat­i­ble clone of the com­mer­cial operating system Red Hat En­ter­prise Linux (RHEL). It was based on RHEL source packages and provided a free al­ter­na­tive that worked in the same way as the paid platform, making it a binary-com­pat­i­ble al­ter­na­tive to RHEL.

On June 30, 2024, CentOS 7 reached EOL, ending support for version 7 of the popular Linux dis­tri­b­u­tion. As a result, the operating system no longer receives updates or security patches. Users who have relied on CentOS should therefore consider switching to al­ter­na­tives such as RHEL, Rocky Linux or AlmaLinux. Below, we explain the ad­van­tages and dis­ad­van­tages of these CentOS al­ter­na­tives and how they can help users manage the end of CentOS support.

RHEL as the com­mer­cial al­ter­na­tive to CentOS

The most obvious CentOS al­ter­na­tive is the “original”: Red Hat En­ter­prise Linux (RHEL). This Linux operating system was in­tro­duced in 2002 as the successor to Red Hat Linux and was designed as a stable platform for business customers. RHEL is used across a wide range of in­dus­tries and ap­pli­ca­tions. In May 2026, for example, RHEL 10.1 together with Red Hat UBI was deployed on a space-edge micro data centre aboard the In­ter­na­tion­al Space Station (ISS). According to Red Hat, the system is also used by the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. De­part­ment of Defense for de­vel­op­ing military AI ca­pa­bil­i­ties.

Ad­van­tages

• Stability and security: RHEL is known for its high level of stability. Ap­pli­ca­tions and updates are thor­ough­ly tested, while a robust security ar­chi­tec­ture helps protect the system. Long main­te­nance cycles also provide reliable support over many years. Since April 2026, the paid Extended Life Cycle Premium (ELCP) option has offered up to 14 years of support for selected security fixes.
• Use cases: RHEL is suitable for desktop systems, servers, cloud computing and container vir­tu­al­iza­tion. It provides a com­pre­hen­sive platform with the necessary tools, in­fra­struc­ture and support for a wide range of business ap­pli­ca­tions.
• Com­pat­i­bil­i­ty: Numerous software de­vel­op­ers and leading server man­u­fac­tur­ers work closely with Red Hat, helping ensure smooth in­te­gra­tion with a wide range of hardware and software.
• Package man­age­ment: RHEL uses RPM as its package format. YUM is used for in­stal­la­tion, updates and package man­age­ment, while current versions use DNF.
• Ease of use: From initial setup to everyday use, RHEL is com­par­a­tive­ly straight­for­ward to work with. Users can get started without extensive prior knowledge.
• Support: RHEL provides extensive doc­u­men­ta­tion, training and pro­fes­sion­al support. Standard support is available for 10 years, while premium options can extend support to 14 years.

Dis­ad­van­tages

• Licensing: RHEL generally requires a paid sub­scrip­tion for updates and pro­fes­sion­al support, although no-cost, self-supported sub­scrip­tions are available for eligible uses.

Rocky Linux as the un­of­fi­cial successor

After the end of the popular open-source platform was announced, CentOS co-founder Gregory Kurtzer created a CentOS al­ter­na­tive designed to work in a similar way to the well-known Linux dis­tri­b­u­tion. This un­of­fi­cial successor is called Rocky Linux.

Ad­van­tages

• Open source: Rocky Linux is com­plete­ly free and developed by a dedicated community. Members of the original CentOS team are actively involved, helping to ensure the project’s long-term de­vel­op­ment.
• Com­pat­i­bil­i­ty: Rocky Linux is a bug-for-bug com­pat­i­ble RHEL clone. It uses Red Hat source packages (SRPMs) to deliver 1:1 com­pat­i­ble releases.
• Stability: Rocky Linux places a strong focus on stability. Updates are carefully tested to ensure systems can be operated reliably. Version 9 receives security updates until 2032, while version 10 receives them until 2035.

Dis­ad­van­tages

• Young project: Rocky Linux is a rel­a­tive­ly young dis­tri­b­u­tion, so less doc­u­men­ta­tion is available compared with more es­tab­lished systems. The initial bot­tle­neck in providing RHEL sources in summer 2023 has been resolved, allowing future updates to be delivered reliably.
• Migration: The “migrate2rocky” script supports con­vert­ing selected en­ter­prise Linux systems such as CentOS Linux 8 and CentOS Stream 8 or 9, AlmaLinux and RHEL to Rocky Linux. However, migration from CentOS 7 is not supported.

AlmaLinux as a simple-to-migrate, ABI-com­pat­i­ble al­ter­na­tive

The history of AlmaLinux is similar to that of Rocky Linux. After Red Hat announced the end of CentOS, CloudLin­ux began de­vel­op­ing a CentOS al­ter­na­tive. The first stable version was released in 2021, and the project is now managed by the non-profit AlmaLinux OS Foun­da­tion.

Ad­van­tages

• Open source: Like CentOS, AlmaLinux is com­plete­ly free and open source. A dedicated community con­tin­u­ous­ly develops the dis­tri­b­u­tion and provides all packages and security updates free of charge.
• Com­pat­i­bil­i­ty: Since July 2023, AlmaLinux has focused on ABI com­pat­i­bil­i­ty with RHEL instead of 1:1 cloning. This allows ap­pli­ca­tions designed for RHEL to run without mod­i­fi­ca­tions.
• Migration: The ELevate project allows CentOS 7 systems to be migrated to AlmaLinux 8 through an in-place upgrade. Further version upgrades are then possible within AlmaLinux, such as from AlmaLinux 8 to 9 and from 9 to 10.
• Stability: AlmaLinux also offers a high level of stability. Updates are released only after thorough testing, and the AlmaLinux Foun­da­tion provides reliable security updates. Version 9 receives security updates until 2032, while version 10 receives them until 2035.

Dis­ad­van­tages

• ABI flex­i­bil­i­ty: Due to its de­lib­er­ate focus on ABI com­pat­i­bil­i­ty, in­di­vid­ual patches may differ from those in RHEL. This can lead to issues that do not occur in RHEL, but it also allows for faster bug fixes.