Act vs jq

act is an open-source command-line tool that runs GitHub Actions workflows locally using Docker containers. It reads workflow files from .github/workflows/ and executes them with environment variables and filesystem configurations matching GitHub's hosted runners. The tool enables fast local feedback on workflow changes without requiring commits and pushes to a remote repository.

jq is lightweight command-line JSON processor for filtering, transforming, and querying JSON data. It provides comprehensive features for development workflows. The tool is actively maintained with regular updates and strong community/vendor support.