head to head · open source
n8n vs Kestra
n8n has 209,375 GitHub stars, 61,361 forks, 1,143 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Kestra has 30,122 stars, 3,495 forks, 713 open issues and last shipped yesterday. n8n leads on adoption by 595% (209,375 vs 30,122 stars). n8n is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; Kestra is written in Java under Apache-2.0. n8n has attracted 29% as many forks as stars, Kestra 12%. n8n was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (automation), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
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 | Kestra | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 209K | ★ 30K |
| License | Custom / other | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Java |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 61K | ⑂ 3.5K |
| 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 Kestra if
- You want the Kestra feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You evaluated both and Kestra 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 Kestra
Open source orchestration platform for data, AI, and infrastructure workflows Click on the image to learn how to get started with Kestra in 3 minutes. 🌟 What is Kestra? Kestra is an open source, event driven orchestration platform for data, AI, and infrastructure workflows. It unifies scheduled and event driven automation behind a declarative, language agnostic interface. By bringing Infrastructure as Code best practices to your data, process, and microservice pipelines, you can build reliable workflows directly from the UI in just a few lines of YAML, let the built in AI Copilot write them for you, or generate…
read the full Kestra overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is n8n or Kestra more popular?
n8n has 209,375 GitHub stars and Kestra has 30,122. n8n has the larger community by that measure.
Are n8n and Kestra free?
Both are open source. n8n has no licence declared in this registry, and Kestra is licensed under Apache-2.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between n8n and Kestra?
n8n is written in TypeScript and Kestra in Java. 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 Kestra?
Choose n8n if you want the larger community (209,375 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose Kestra if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.