I’ve compiled a list of community-driven, non-corporate FOSS operating systems. What I mean by “community-driven” is distributions that are self-governed, where decisions regarding the direction of the distribution are ultimately made by the community itself and its leadership. This is in contrast to distributions that are beholden to corporations like IBM/Red Hat, Canonical, and Novell.
Each distribution has four properties:
| Name | Userland | Kernel | Init | Website |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AlmaLinux | GNU | Linux | systemd | https://almalinux.org |
| Alpine Linux | Musl, BusyBox | Linux | OpenRC | https://alpinelinux.org |
| antiX Linux | GNU | Linux | runit, SysV | https://antixlinux.com |
| Arch Linux | GNU | Linux | systemd | https://archlinux.org |
| Artix Linux | GNU | Linux | OpenRC, runit, s6, Dinit | https://artixlinux.org |
| CachyOS | GNU | Linux with perfornance enhancements | systemd | https://cachyos.org |
| CalyxOS | Android | Android | Android | https://calyxos.org |
| Chimera Linux | Musl, BSD, LLVM compiler and runtime stack | Linux | Dinit | https://chimera-linux.org |
| Debian GNU/Linux | GNU | Linux | systemd | https://www.debian.org |
| Devuan GNU+Linux | GNU | Linux | SysV, OpenRC | https://www.devuan.org/ |
| DragonFly BSD | DragonFly BSD | DragonFly BSD | BSD RC | https://dragonflybsd.org |
| /e/os/ | Android | Android | Android | https://e.foundation/e-os/ |
| FreeBSD | FreeBSD | FreeBSD | BSD RC | https://freebsd.org |
| GNU Guix System | GNU | Linux-libre | GNU Shepherd | https://guix.gnu.org/en |
| Gentoo Linux | GNU | Linux | systemd or OpenRC | https://gentoo.org/ |
| GrapheneOS | Android | Android | Android | https://grapheneos.org/ |
| HardenedBSD | FreeBSD | HardenedBSD | BSD RC | https://hardenedbsd.org/ |
| Hyperbola GNU/Linux-libre | GNU | Linux-libre | systemd | https://hyperbola.info |
| Linux Mint | GNU | Linux | systemd | https://linuxmint.com/ |
| MX Linux | GNU | Linux | SysV, systemd, OpenRC, runit | https://mxlinux.org/ |
| NetBSD | NetBSD | NetBSD | BSD RC | https://netbsd.org/ |
| OpenBSD | OpenBSD | OpenBSD | BSD RC | https://openbsdfoundation.org/ |
| Parabola GNU/Linux-libre | GNU | Linux-libre | systemd | https://parabola.nu |
| Qubes OS | GNU | Linux | systemd | https://qubes-os.org/ |
| Rocky Linux | GNU | Linux | systemd | https://rockylinux.org |
| Slackware | GNU | Linux | SysV | https://slackware.com |
| Tails OS | GNU | Linux | systemd | https://tails.net |
| Void Linux | Musl or GNU | Linux | runit | https://voidlinux.org |
| postmarketOS | Musl | Linux | OpenRC, but plans to include systemd | https://postmarketos.org/ |