Backstage
CNCF-backed, open-source developer portal and service catalog framework, originally built at Spotify.
Self-hosted Open source Apache 2.0 developer-portalplatform-engineering
Pricing
Free (open source, CNCF).
Backstage centralizes service ownership, documentation, and golden-path templates into one internal portal — the standard reference point for platform engineering teams standardizing at scale.
Key features
- Central service catalog with ownership metadata
- TechDocs for docs-as-code, rendered in-portal
- Software templates encode golden paths for new services
- Large plugin ecosystem (CI/CD, cost, security integrations)
Self-hosted vs. cloud
Self-hosted only, and it’s a real commitment — expect to dedicate part of a platform team to running and extending it. Below roughly 30-40 services, the overhead usually isn’t worth it yet.
Quick start
npx @backstage/create-app@latest
Alternatives
For a lower-ops alternative that skips self-hosting entirely, a managed portal product is worth comparing before committing to Backstage.