head to head · open source
conductor vs Mage
conductor has 32,401 GitHub stars, 1,051 forks, 253 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Mage has 8,840 stars, 994 forks, 624 open issues and last shipped 11 days ago. conductor leads on adoption by 267% (32,401 vs 8,840 stars). conductor is written in Java under Apache-2.0; Mage is written in Python under Apache-2.0. conductor has attracted 3% as many forks as stars, Mage 11%. conductor 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.
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Side by side
| conductor | Mage | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 32K | ★ 8.8K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Java | Python |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-10-23 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.1K | ⑂ 994 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick conductor if
- You weight community size — 32K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Mage if
- You want the Mage feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and Mage fits your workflow better
About conductor
Conductor Durable Execution for Workflows and Agents Build agents that adapt. Run graphs that endure. Conductor is an open source durable execution platform for microservices, AI agents, and adaptive workflow graphs. It turns runtime choices—loops, branching, fan out, tool calls, approvals, retries, and cancellation—into durable, inspectable execution. It originated at Netflix and is actively maintained by Orkes and the community. Get Running in 60 Seconds Prerequisites: Node.js v16+ and Java 21+ must be installed. Open — your server is running with the built in ui next UI. Upgrading from a previous version? The…
read the full conductor overview →
About Mage
Mage OSS Build modern data pipelines locally — fast, visual, and production ready. Mage OSS is a self hosted development environment designed to help teams create production grade data pipelines with confidence. Ideal for automating ETL tasks, architecting data flow, or orchestrating transformations — all in a fast, notebook style interface powered by modular code. When it’s time to scale, Mage Pro — our core platform — unlocks enterprise orchestration, collaboration, and AI powered workflows. What you can do with Mage OSS Build pipelines locally with Python, SQL, or R in a modular notebook style UI Run jobs…
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Frequently asked questions
Is conductor or Mage more popular?
conductor has 32,401 GitHub stars and Mage has 8,840. conductor has the larger community by that measure.
Are conductor and Mage free?
Both are open source. conductor is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Mage under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between conductor and Mage?
conductor is written in Java and Mage 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, conductor or Mage?
Choose conductor if you want the larger community (32,401 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose Mage if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.