head to head · open source
n8n vs LiveKit
n8n has 209,375 GitHub stars, 61,361 forks, 1,143 open issues and last shipped yesterday. LiveKit has 21,994 stars, 2,526 forks, 189 open issues and last shipped yesterday. n8n leads on adoption by 852% (209,375 vs 21,994 stars). n8n is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; LiveKit is written in Go under Apache-2.0. n8n has attracted 29% as many forks as stars, LiveKit 11%. LiveKit 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
| n8n | LiveKit | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 209K | ★ 22K |
| License | Custom / other | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Go |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 61K | ⑂ 2.5K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick n8n if
- You weight community size — 209K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick LiveKit if
- You want the LiveKit feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and LiveKit fits your workflow better
About n8n
n8n – The Platform for AI Agents and Workflow Automation Fair code platform to build and deploy AI agents and workflows. Combine a visual canvas with custom code, run it self hosted or in the cloud, and connect to 1500+ integrations. AI automation you can trust with real work, from prototype to production. Key Capabilities AI Native Automation Platform : Build and operationalize AI workflows and multi step agents using your own data, models, and tools Model Flexibility, No Lock In : Connect to OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, or open source models and switch providers without changing your architecture From Prototype…
About LiveKit
LiveKit: Realtime infrastructure for voice, video, and AI agents LiveKit is an open source platform for building voice, video, and physical AI agents. This repository is the LiveKit server: a scalable, distributed WebRTC SFU that moves realtime audio, video, and data between people, devices, and AI models. The SDKs, agents frameworks, and companion services are linked in the table at the bottom of this page. LiveKit's server is written in Go, using the awesome Pion WebRTC implementation. [!IMPORTANT] If you're building Voice AI, LiveKit Agents is the SDK for code first realtime voice agents. STT, LLM, TTS, turn…
read the full LiveKit overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is n8n or LiveKit more popular?
n8n has 209,375 GitHub stars and LiveKit has 21,994. n8n has the larger community by that measure.
Are n8n and LiveKit free?
Both are open source. n8n has no licence declared in this registry, and LiveKit is licensed under Apache-2.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between n8n and LiveKit?
n8n is written in TypeScript and LiveKit in Go. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, n8n or LiveKit?
Choose n8n if you want the larger community (209,375 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose LiveKit if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.