head to head · open source
conductor vs happier
conductor has 32,401 GitHub stars, 1,051 forks, 253 open issues and last shipped yesterday. happier has 2,117 stars, 211 forks, 160 open issues and last shipped yesterday. conductor leads on adoption by 1,431% (32,401 vs 2,117 stars). conductor is written in Java under Apache-2.0; happier is written in TypeScript under MIT. conductor has attracted 3% as many forks as stars, happier 10%. happier 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 | happier | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 32K | ★ 2.1K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Java | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.1K | ⑂ 211 |
| 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 happier if
- You want the happier feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and happier 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 happier
One control room for all your coding agents. The way orchestrating agents should feel. From your phone, desktop and browser. Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode, Pi and more, working together and in parallel on your own machines. Sessions can spawn subagents across agents: e.g. Claude asking Codex for a review, or Codex delegating to Claude subagents. Switch agents mid session. Approve, steer, review and commit from wherever you are. Open source · Self hostable · End to end encrypted Get started · Downloads · Docs · Self host · Discord Latest Happier project update Happier is free and open source. Your agents keep…
read the full happier overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is conductor or happier more popular?
conductor has 32,401 GitHub stars and happier has 2,117. conductor has the larger community by that measure.
Are conductor and happier free?
Both are open source. conductor is licensed under Apache-2.0 and happier under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between conductor and happier?
conductor is written in Java and happier in TypeScript. 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 happier?
Choose conductor if you want the larger community (32,401 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose happier if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.