head to head · open source
ansible vs flowable-engine
ansible has 70,721 GitHub stars, 24,333 forks, 837 open issues and last shipped yesterday. flowable-engine has 9,540 stars, 2,891 forks, 411 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. ansible leads on adoption by 641% (70,721 vs 9,540 stars). ansible is written in Python under GPL-3.0; flowable-engine is written in Java under Apache-2.0. ansible has attracted 34% as many forks as stars, flowable-engine 30%. ansible was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
← all 15422 open source comparisons
Side by side
| ansible | flowable-engine | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 71K | ★ 9.5K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | Java |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 24K | ⑂ 2.9K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick ansible if
- You weight community size — 71K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick flowable-engine if
- You want the flowable-engine feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You evaluated both and flowable-engine fits your workflow better
About ansible
Ansible is a radically simple, agentless IT automation platform, written in Python and licensed under GPL 3.0, that handles configuration management, application deployment, cloud provisioning, ad hoc task execution, network automation, and multi node orchestration for operators, developers, and network and cloud teams who manage machines over plain SSH.
read the full ansible overview →
About flowable-engine
Flowable is an open source workflow and Business Process Management platform written in Java and distributed under the Apache 2.0 license. It bundles three engines in one project: a BPMN process engine, a CMMN case engine, and a DMN rule engine. The project lives in the Java ecosystem, integrates with Spring, and exposes both a Java API and a REST API for orchestrating human or system activities.
read the full flowable-engine overview →
More in Infrastructure & Operations
Related comparisons
More Orchestration & Scheduling projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the Orchestration & Scheduling field.
Frequently asked questions
Is ansible or flowable-engine more popular?
ansible has 70,721 GitHub stars and flowable-engine has 9,540. ansible has the larger community by that measure.
Are ansible and flowable-engine free?
Both are open source. ansible is licensed under GPL-3.0 and flowable-engine under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between ansible and flowable-engine?
ansible is written in Python and flowable-engine in Java. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, ansible or flowable-engine?
Choose ansible if you want the larger community (70,721 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose flowable-engine if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.