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CentOS VS Red Hat Enterprise Linux_

As of 4 November 2026, Red Hat Enterprise Linux is named by 2,259 companies and CentOS by 765; CentOS skews to companies under 200 people (50% vs 42%), Red Hat Enterprise Linux to companies over 1,000 (34% vs 26%).

As of 4 November 2026 · refreshed daily · counts move as websites, DNS and career sites are re-read.

The website-and-DNS footprint is not comparable between a marketing suite and a CRM: CentOS's script and mail records show on hundreds of thousands of small sites, Red Hat Enterprise Linux rarely leaves a trace outside its own apps. Compare on the job-posting numbers; use the footprint for reach.

CentOS: 2–200 employees
50%
Red Hat Enterprise Linux: 2–200 employees
42%
CentOS: 1,000+ employees
26%
Red Hat Enterprise Linux: 1,000+ employees
34%
Postings per company, 90 days
2.2 · 4.2
Website or DNS footprint
0 · 0
765companies name CentOS
2,259companies name Red Hat Enterprise Linux
787name both
1,664 · 9,445postings in 90 days, CentOS · Red Hat Enterprise Linux
02 — Side by side

Who chooses which

Share of each tool's companies in every segment. "Leans" marks a gap of more than two points.

By company size
SegmentCentOSshareRed Hat Enterprise LinuxshareLeans
Self-employed162%372%even
2-10 employees537%1256%even
11-50 employees13217%31214%CentOS
51-200 employees19626%51923%CentOS
201-500 employees9312%30213%even
501-1000 employees7410%1969%even
1001-5000 employees8711%33515%Red Hat Enterprise Linux
5001-10000 employees294%1035%even
10,001+ employees8511%33015%Red Hat Enterprise Linux
By industry
SegmentCentOSshareRed Hat Enterprise LinuxshareLeans
Technology & software40753%1,08648%CentOS
Business & finance services13117%43619%Red Hat Enterprise Linux
Manufacturing & industry8411%27412%even
Utilities & infrastructure294%763%even
Media & content284%532%even
Public, community & associations203%824%even
Consumer services & leisure192%683%even
Commerce & trade152%532%even
Property & construction81%231%even
Transport, logistics & rental81%352%even
Health care71%412%even
Automotive51%221%even
By country
SegmentCentOSshareRed Hat Enterprise LinuxshareLeans
United States41354%1,26256%even
United Kingdom446%1235%even
France425%1035%even
India344%562%even
Germany294%1225%even
Singapore142%281%even
Canada101%573%even
Italy101%––outside top 12
Netherlands101%301%even
Poland101%––outside top 12
Japan91%––outside top 12
Czechia61%––outside top 12
Australia––291%outside top 12
Switzerland––261%outside top 12
Sweden––241%outside top 12
Spain––231%outside top 12
Postings by team (share of each tool's postings)
SegmentCentOSshareRed Hat Enterprise LinuxshareLeans
IT operations & business systems1,10845%5,77446%even
Software engineering72230%3,18026%CentOS
Engineering (non-software)1305%7686%even
Customer service & success843%1521%CentOS
Data & AI321%2552%even
Product, program & project management151%1731%even
Sales110%1681%even
Quality, safety & environment60%160%even
Education & training50%280%even
Marketing & communications50%80%even
Administration & office40%290%even
General management & consulting30%260%even
Unclassified20%220%even
hospitality and food service10%40%even
Legal, compliance & risk10%40%even
research and science10%100%even
skilled trades and field service––250%outside top 12
Business development & strategy––180%outside top 12
construction and civil––90%outside top 12
Finance & accounting––70%outside top 12
logistics warehouse and transport––70%outside top 12
Human resources––40%outside top 12
arts media and entertainment––30%outside top 12
public safety and protective services––30%outside top 12
facilities cleaning and security––20%outside top 12
Design & UX––10%outside top 12
manufacturing and production––10%outside top 12
procurement and purchasing––10%outside top 12
Cite this

Quote the sentence with the date and the link. The numbers change daily; the link always shows the current ones.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux is named by 2,259 companies in job postings and CentOS by 765; 787 name both. (Breaknorm, 4 November 2026, https://breaknorm.co/compare/centos-vs-red-hat-enterprise-linux)
How we know

Read from the source, not self-reported

Every number on this page can be traced to a page we crawled or a posting we read. Full methodology →

  • Job postingsRead hourly from career sites. A tool counts when the employer's own text names it as the team's system; both tools can count for one company.
  • Website and DNSScripts and embeds on the company's pages, plus SPF, DKIM, MX and CNAME records of its domain that point at the vendor.
  • SegmentsCountry, size and industry from the company profile built from its website.
  • Not a reviewNo ratings, prices or feature claims. For those, read the vendors.
FAQ

CentOS vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux: questions

Which is more used, CentOS or Red Hat Enterprise Linux?

By companies naming it in their own job postings, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (2,259) over CentOS (765). By website-and-DNS footprint, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (0 vs 0), because its scripts and mail records sit on many small company sites.

Who chooses CentOS?

50% of CentOS companies have 2 to 200 employees, against 42% for Red Hat Enterprise Linux. 26% of CentOS companies have over 1,000 employees, against 34% for Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

Do companies run both?

787 companies name both in their postings, usually CentOS in marketing and Red Hat Enterprise Linux in sales, or during a migration.

Where do these numbers come from?

From the employer's own text in job postings read hourly from career sites, and from scripts found on company websites in our crawl. No vendor data, no surveys.

Companies and people

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