head to head · open source
dapr vs Prefect
dapr has 26,154 GitHub stars, 2,170 forks, 452 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. Prefect has 24,066 stars, 2,615 forks, 858 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. dapr leads on adoption by 9% (26,154 vs 24,066 stars). dapr is written in Go under Apache-2.0; Prefect is written in Python under Apache-2.0. dapr has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, Prefect 11%. Prefect 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
| dapr | Prefect | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 26K | ★ 24K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Go | Python |
| Last push | 2026-10-22 | 2026-10-23 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.2K | ⑂ 2.6K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick dapr if
- You weight community size — 26K 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 Prefect if
- You want the Prefect 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 Prefect fits your workflow better
About dapr
The runtime for durable execution, AI agents, and secure distributed applications [![Go Report][go report badge]][go report url] [![OpenSSF][openssf badge]][openssf url] [![Docker Pulls][docker badge]][docker url] [![Build Status][actions badge]][actions url] [![Test Status][e2e badge]][e2e url] [![Code Coverage][codecov badge]][codecov url] [![License: Apache 2.0][apache badge]][apache url] [![FOSSA Status][fossa badge]][fossa url] [![TODOs][todo badge]][todo url] [![Good First Issues][gfi badge]][gfi url] [![discord][discord badge]][discord url] [![YouTube][youtube badge]][youtube link] [![Bluesky][bluesky…
About Prefect
Installation · Quickstart · Build workflows · Deploy workflows · Prefect Cloud Prefect Prefect is a workflow orchestration framework for building data pipelines in Python. It's the simplest way to elevate a script into a production workflow. With Prefect, you can build resilient, dynamic data pipelines that react to the world around them and recover from unexpected changes. With just a few lines of code, data teams can confidently automate any data process with features such as scheduling, caching, retries, and event based automations. Workflow activity is tracked and can be monitored with a self hosted Prefect…
read the full Prefect overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is dapr or Prefect more popular?
dapr has 26,154 GitHub stars and Prefect has 24,066. dapr has the larger community by that measure.
Are dapr and Prefect free?
Both are open source. dapr is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Prefect under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between dapr and Prefect?
dapr is written in Go and Prefect 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, dapr or Prefect?
Choose dapr if you want the larger community (26,154 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose Prefect if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.