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Dev tools · alternatives · 2026

24 alternatives to Build is like Makefile for single files

build is like Makefile for single files. Contribute to hbbio/build development by creating an account on GitHub.

Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes. Build is like Makefile for single files launched in 2018; newer entries below may have overtaken it.

  1. 1

    Generic drop in Makefile. GitHub Gist: instantly share code, notes, and snippets.

    2023 · gist.github.com · its alternatives →

  2. 2

    Ultimate collection of free tools for MVP or online project

    2023 · anmolmishra.gumroad.com · its alternatives →

  3. 3

    Hey HN! We just launched open sign up on Buildstash. It's a platform for managing and sharing software binaries. I'd worked across game dev, mobile apps, and agencies - and found every team had no real system for managing their built binaries. Often just dumped in a shared folder (if someone remembered!). No system for versioning, keeping track of who'd signed off what when, or what exact build had gone to a client, etc. Existing tools out there for managing build artifacts are really focused on package repository management. But miss all the other types of software not being deployed that…

    2025 · buildstash.com · its alternatives →

  4. 4

    I love C and C++, but setting up projects can sometimes be a pain. Every time I wanted to start something new I'd spend the first hour writing CMakeLists.txt, figuring out find_package, copying boilerplate from my last project, and googling why my library isn't linking. By the time the project was actually set up I'd lost all momentum. So, I built Craft - a lightweight build and workflow tool for C and C++. Instead of writing CMake, your project configuration goes in a simple craft.toml: [project] name = "my_app" version = "0.1.0" language = "c" c_standard = 99 [build] type = "executable"…

    Apr 2026 · github.com · its alternatives →

  5. 5HM

    A developer's machine accumulates tools fast. A Rust CLI you compiled last year, a Python formatter installed via `uv`, a language server pulled from npm, a terminal emulator from a curl script, a Go binary built from source. Each came from a different package manager, each with its own install incantation you half-remember. I wanted a way to declare what I need without adopting a complex system like Nix or Ansible just for a single laptop. The result was a plain old Makefile. I wrote a short post on using Make (along with a tiny bash script and fzf) to create a searchable, single-command…

    Mar 2026 · thottingal.in · its alternatives →

  6. 6WS

    I’ve been in the MLOps space for ~10 years, and data is still the hardest unsolved open problem. Code is versioned using Git, data is stored somewhere else, and context often lives in a 3rd location like Slack or GDocs. This is why we built XetHub, a platform that enables teams to treat data like code, using Git. Unlike Git LFS, we don’t just store the files. We use content-defined chunking and Merkle Trees to dedupe against everything in history. This allows small changes in large files to be stored compactly. Read more here:…

    2022 · xethub.com · its alternatives →

  7. 7
    Earthly▲107

    Build anything via containers

    2020 · earthly.dev · its alternatives →

  8. 8
    Built▲12

    Projects for developers

    2024 · built-iota.vercel.app · its alternatives →

  9. 9TA
  10. 10

    Build your stack like Lego

    2022 · its alternatives →

  11. 11WF

    Since some days ago I’ve been playing with bifrost-build, a github repository with recipes for building static linux binaries. The recipes are no different from other linux distributions where an…

    2015 · javier.io · its alternatives →

  12. 12

    Justfiles are like Makefiles, except Just is a command runner, whereas Make is a build system. As I understand it, Just was built to be a less arcane version of Make for collecting commands common to a code repository. When I first learned about Just, I realized that parsing arguments and running commands is exactly what shell scripts do, and there probably isn't much Just does that sh doesn't. This project proves that hypothesis by compiling Justfiles to portable (POSIX-compatible) shell scripts. just.sh is particularly useful for running Justfiles in esoteric environments where Just may…

    2023 · github.com · its alternatives →

  13. 13
    Bit▲119

    Share components in team and collaborate to build faster

    2019 · bit.dev · its alternatives →

  14. 14CC

    Chunk co-founder here. We spent the last 2 weeks building this to scratch our own itch: As developers, we often have problems that could be solved just by running a few lines of code. Sometimes, running this code on your local machine is fine. But other time, the code need to run automatically reacting to external events or to run continuously, which means, it needs to run on a server somewhere. So now, you have to find a cloud provider, to package or build the code and finally to deploy it. All of that for what could be literally be 4 lines of code. We couldn’t find an easier way to do…

    2022 · chunk.run · its alternatives →

  15. 15CB
  16. 16

    A makefile used for running test executables. Contribute to box/Makefile.test development by creating an account on GitHub.

    2017 · github.com · its alternatives →

  17. 17

    Move dotfiles to ~/.config/lnk, get symlinks back, use Git normally. Single binary, no config files, no fluff. Built because chezmoi was too complex and plain Git was too manual.

    2025 · github.com · its alternatives →

  18. 18

    🔥 A cross-platform build utility based on Lua. Contribute to xmake-io/xmake development by creating an account on GitHub.

    2017 · github.com · its alternatives →

  19. 19
  20. 20

    buco: Builder at Compile Time. Contribute to NishantJoshi00/buco development by creating an account on GitHub.

    2025 · github.com · its alternatives →

  21. 21

    Beast is a build system built for speed and power - a tool for all your build needs. GitHub: https://github.com/GauravDawra/Beast Docs: https://gauravdawra.github.io/Beast-docs/ As a project grows larger, it becomes difficult to keep track of all the build and compilation procedures that need to be followed. So what should we do??? Not to worry! Beast helps you build your projects with minimal effort and high efficiency, bringing more power to you. In addition, it is super easy to use and syntactically easy to understand, making it suitable for both:…

    2022 · github.com · its alternatives →

  22. 22

    We make building social

    Feb 2026 · app.iq-project.ai · its alternatives →

  23. 23

    For Builders who don't know what to build next!

    May 2026 · whattobuild.dev · its alternatives →

  24. 24

    Like The Super Tiny Compiler, but in Go. Contribute to hazbo/the-super-tiny-compiler development by creating an account on GitHub.

    2016 · github.com · its alternatives →

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Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →