GitLab
Large (~2,500)
Modal
Small (~110)
Best For
GitLab
Best for: Engineers who want a fully remote, async-first culture with radical transparency
Modal
Best for: Systems engineers who want to build developer-loved cloud infrastructure with elite teammates
Ratings
GitLabModal
3.9
4.0
Overall
3.9
3.8
Work-Life Balance
4.0
4.2
Culture & Values
3.8
3.8
Comp & Benefits
3.5
4.0
Senior Mgmt
3.7
3.5
Career Opps
👍 75% Recommend
👤 70% CEO Approval (Sid Sijbrandij)
👍 82% Recommend
👤 88% CEO Approval (Erik Bernhardsson)
Culture Values
GitLab only
🌐 Remote-Friendly📡 Async-First🪟 Transparent⚖️ Work-Life Balance
Modal only
⚙️ Engineering-Driven🚀 Ship Fast & Iterate🎧 Deep Work / Low Meetings🎯 Direct Product Impact🧩 Wears Many Hats
Shared
🔓 Open Source
Pros & Cons
GitLab
- Best-in-class all-remote culture — truly async-first with genuine flexibility
- Radically transparent company with a public handbook and open processes
- Revenue organization has seen quota chaos and low morale
- Some leadership instability at the C-suite level
Modal
- World-class engineering team — includes creators of Luigi, Seaborn, and olympiad medalists
- High-impact product with 50x revenue growth — developers widely praise the platform
- Early-stage startup dynamics — roles shift quickly, requires high self-direction
- Limited HR infrastructure — benefits and career ladders still being developed
Bottom Line
GitLab
Choose GitLab if you want the gold standard of all-remote work with public handbook and async processes — but expect bureaucracy at scale and comp below top-tier.
Modal
Choose Modal if you want world-class engineering peers and 50x revenue growth — but expect early-stage startup dynamics.
Open Roles
GitLab — 195 jobs
💻 Engineering
79
💼 Sales / GTM
67
📋 Product
10
⚖️ Legal
5
📊 Data
4
🎨 Design
4
📣 Marketing
4
👤 HR / People
2
⚙️ Operations
2
Modal — 28 jobs
💻 Engineering
14
📣 Marketing
3
💼 Sales / GTM
3
🧠 ML / AI
2
⚙️ Operations
2
💰 Finance
1
Summary
GitLab scores 3.9/5.0 on Glassdoor with a 3.9 work-life balance rating. Modal scores 4.0/5.0 overall with a 3.8 WLB. That’s a 0.1-point gap on overall satisfaction.
Both companies share these culture values: Open Source. GitLab also emphasizes Remote-Friendly, Async-First, Transparent, Work-Life Balance. Modal also emphasizes Engineering-Driven, Ship Fast & Iterate, Deep Work / Low Meetings, Direct Product Impact, Wears Many Hats.
On the hiring front, GitLab has 195 open roles and Modal has 28 open roles.