head to head · open source
Prefect vs rowboat
Prefect has 23,857 GitHub stars, 2,528 forks, 858 open issues and last shipped yesterday. rowboat has 17,871 stars, 1,776 forks, 167 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Prefect leads on adoption by 33% (23,857 vs 17,871 stars). Prefect is written in Python under Apache-2.0; rowboat is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0. Prefect has attracted 11% as many forks as stars, rowboat 10%. 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
| Prefect | rowboat | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 24K | ★ 18K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.5K | ⑂ 1.8K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Prefect if
- You weight community size — 24K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick rowboat if
- You want the rowboat feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and rowboat fits your workflow better
About Prefect
Prefect is an open source, Python native workflow orchestration framework that lets data and machine learning teams turn ordinary Python scripts into scheduled, resilient, observable production pipelines.
read the full Prefect overview →
About rowboat
Rowboat is an open source desktop AI coworker, licensed Apache 2.0 and written in TypeScript, that maintains a memory of your work as a local Markdown knowledge graph and provides built in surfaces — email, notes, browser, code mode, meeting notes — for acting on that memory.
read the full rowboat overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Prefect or rowboat more popular?
Prefect has 23,857 GitHub stars and rowboat has 17,871. Prefect has the larger community by that measure.
Are Prefect and rowboat free?
Both are open source. Prefect is licensed under Apache-2.0 and rowboat under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Prefect and rowboat?
Prefect is written in Python and rowboat 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, Prefect or rowboat?
Choose Prefect if you want the larger community (23,857 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose rowboat if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.