head to head · open source
compose vs agent-framework
compose has 38,195 GitHub stars, 5,825 forks, 111 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. agent-framework has 13,604 stars, 2,344 forks, 617 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. compose leads on adoption by 181% (38,195 vs 13,604 stars). compose is written in Go under Apache-2.0; agent-framework is written in Python under MIT. compose has attracted 15% as many forks as stars, agent-framework 17%. agent-framework was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (orchestration), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| compose | agent-framework | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 38K | ★ 14K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Go | Python |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-18 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.8K | ⑂ 2.3K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick compose if
- You weight community size — 38K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick agent-framework if
- You want the agent-framework feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and agent-framework fits your workflow better
About compose
Docker Compose is an Apache 2.0 licensed Go tool that defines and runs multi container applications on Docker from a single Compose file, aimed at developers and operators who need several containers to start together as one isolated application.
read the full compose overview →
About agent-framework
Microsoft Agent Framework is an open, MIT licensed, multi language framework for building, orchestrating and deploying production grade AI agents and multi agent workflows in Python and .NET, aimed at teams moving agents from prototype to production.
read the full agent-framework overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is compose or agent-framework more popular?
compose has 38,195 GitHub stars and agent-framework has 13,604. compose has the larger community by that measure.
Are compose and agent-framework free?
Both are open source. compose is licensed under Apache-2.0 and agent-framework under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between compose and agent-framework?
compose is written in Go and agent-framework in Python. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, compose or agent-framework?
Choose compose if you want the larger community (38,195 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose agent-framework if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.