Kestra alternatives
Orchestrate data, infrastructure and AI workflows with YAML and a visual UI.
Alternatives by use case
Start with Activepieces
Visual workflows with branching
Builds and runs app-connected flows and AI agents in the cloud or on customer-controlled infrastructure.
Compare the alternatives
| Tool | A good fit for | Pricing | Describe workflows | Self-hosting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kestra | Engineering and platform teams orchestrating durable data, infrastructure and AI jobs | Open Source is free to self-host with unlimited flows/executions. Enterprise Edition and fully managed Kestra Cloud have unpublished, request-based pricing. | Yes | Yes |
| Activepieces | Visual workflows with branching | $0–$200/mo; annual billing lowers Plus to $16/mo and Team to $166/mo; Ultimate custom; Community Edition free self-hosted | Limited | Yes |
 Windmill | AI-led work across apps | Cloud Free: $0, 1,000 executions/month. Cloud Team: $10/developer seat/month (operators $5), 10,000 executions/seat, maximum 10 seats. Cloud Enterprise is capacity-based, advertised from $840/month. Self-hosted Free is $0 with unlimited executions; self-hosted Enterprise is seats+compute, and eligible small-company Pro is separately restricted. | Yes | Yes |
 CrewAI | Self-hosting and ownership | Basic Free: 2 automations and 50 workflow executions/month. MIT framework is free to run yourself. Enterprise has custom pricing. | Limited | Yes |
 Zapier | Reliable unattended workflows | Free–$69+/mo (Free 100 tasks, Professional from $19.99/mo annual for 750 tasks, Team from $69/mo annual for 2,000) | Yes | No |
 n8n | AI steps with human review | Free self-hosted Community edition; Starter €20/mo, Pro €50/mo, Business €667/mo (all billed annually, monthly billing shown as 17% more); Enterprise custom pricing | Yes | Yes |
Each alternative in detail
01
Activepieces: visual workflows with branching
Builds and runs app-connected flows and AI agents in the cloud or on customer-controlled infrastructure.
- Visual workflow builder
- Conditional branches
- Email, form, or manual trigger
Who it suits
Individuals and teams that want app automation with AI agents and optional self-hosting.
02
Windmill: AI-led work across apps
Build code-first workflows, APIs and internal tools with a low-code flow editor.
- Build workflows with natural language
- Autonomous agents
- Ready-made app integrations
Who it suits
Developers automating internal processes with scripts, APIs and governed flows.
03
CrewAI: self-hosting and ownership
Build and deploy AI crews and event-driven flows with a managed or open-source runtime.
- Self-hosting
- Open source
Who it suits
Teams building reusable multi-agent workflows in Python or a managed visual editor
04
Zapier: reliable unattended workflows
The largest no-code automation catalogue, billed per task, cloud only.
- Retries and error paths
- Run history and logs
- Monitoring and alerts
The trade-off. Unlike Kestra, it has no open source code or self-hosting.
Who it suits
Teams who need one specific integration that exists nowhere else
05
n8n: AI steps with human review
A fair-code workflow automation platform with a visual node canvas, AI agents, and MCP support, sold as managed cloud or self-hosted.
- Human approval steps
- AI model steps
Who it suits
Technical teams building visual, code-extensible workflows and AI agents, self-hosted or in n8n Cloud
Questions about Kestra alternatives
What is a good alternative to Kestra?
Start with Activepieces for visual workflows with branching. Windmill suits AI-led work across apps. CrewAI suits self-hosting and ownership.
How do the prices compare with Kestra?
Kestra: Open Source is free to self-host with unlimited flows/executions. Enterprise Edition and fully managed Kestra Cloud have unpublished, request-based pricing. Activepieces: $0–$200/mo; annual billing lowers Plus to $16/mo and Team to $166/mo; Ultimate custom; Community Edition free self-hosted. Windmill: Cloud Free: $0, 1,000 executions/month. Cloud Team: $10/developer seat/month (operators $5), 10,000 executions/seat, maximum 10 seats. Cloud Enterprise is capacity-based, advertised from $840/month. Self-hosted Free is $0 with unlimited executions; self-hosted Enterprise is seats+compute, and eligible small-company Pro is separately restricted.
Is there a free alternative to Kestra?
Yes. Activepieces, Windmill, CrewAI and Zapier can be used for free. Self-hosting Activepieces still costs hosting and model usage.
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