head to head · open source
Kestra vs atom
Kestra has 28,148 GitHub stars, 2,999 forks, 713 open issues and last shipped yesterday. atom has 899 stars, 94 forks, 2 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Kestra leads on adoption by 3,031% (28,148 vs 899 stars). Kestra is written in Java under Apache-2.0; atom is written in Python under AGPL-3.0. Kestra has attracted 11% as many forks as stars, atom 10%. Kestra 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
| Kestra | atom | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 28K | ★ 899 |
| License | Apache-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Java | Python |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.0K | ⑂ 94 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Kestra if
- You weight community size — 28K 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 atom if
- You want the atom feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and atom fits your workflow better
About Kestra
Kestra is an open source, event driven orchestration platform for data, AI, and infrastructure workflows. It operates in the Java based ecosystem and is licensed under Apache 2.0. The project provides a unified interface for both scheduled and real time automation, supporting declarative workflow definitions in YAML while also offering visual and AI assisted authoring.
read the full Kestra overview →
About atom
ATOM Platform The governed agent platform — autonomy, earned. 88% of AI agent pilots never reach production. Atom is built for the other path. Industry figure (Turion 2026). Atom makes no claims about its own deployments. What is Atom? Atom is an open source, self hosted AI agent workforce — a team of specialty agents (sales, support, finance, engineering) that your people delegate to in plain language. Where other platforms sell agent capability , Atom sells agent accountability : autonomy that is earned through verified outcomes, executed inside a deterministic safety net, on your hardware. Agents that earn tru…
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Frequently asked questions
Is Kestra or atom more popular?
Kestra has 28,148 GitHub stars and atom has 899. Kestra has the larger community by that measure.
Are Kestra and atom free?
Both are open source. Kestra is licensed under Apache-2.0 and atom under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Kestra and atom?
Kestra is written in Java and atom 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, Kestra or atom?
Choose Kestra if you want the larger community (28,148 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose atom if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.