What is the main difference between Dagu and Kestra?

Dagu and Kestra are both workflow orchestration tools but differ in their approach, features, and target audience. Compare their GitHub stats, technology stack, and community adoption to make the best choice.

Which is better: Dagu or Kestra?

The choice between Dagu and Kestra depends on your specific needs, technical requirements, and team preferences. Both are quality open source solutions with active communities.

Can I migrate from Dagu to Kestra?

Migration between Dagu and Kestra is possible but requires careful planning. Consider data export/import capabilities, feature parity, and potential workflow changes.

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Dagu vs Kestra

Learn how Dagu and Kestra differ in their key features, development activity, technology stack and community adoption, so you can decide which of these workflow orchestration tools is best for you.

Dagu

Single-binary workflow orchestrator that runs scheduled DAGs locally or over SSH, with retries, human tasks, a built-in Web UI, and file-based state storage.

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3,807stars+77(+2.1%)

Last 30 days

Last commit
12 hours ago
Repository age
4 years
Version
v2.15.3
License
GPL-3.0
Self-hosted
Yes
Repository
dagucloud/dagu

Sponsor Dagu ongithub.com

Kestra

YAML-based orchestration platform with 1400+ plugins for running data pipelines, AI workflows, and infrastructure automation across teams at scale.

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27,928stars+445(+1.6%)

Last 30 days

Last commit
10 hours ago
Repository age
7 years
Version
v1.3.30
License
Apache-2.0
Self-hosted
Yes
Repository
kestra-io/kestra

Detailed Comparison

Both Dagu and Kestra have their unique strengths and serve similar purposes effectively. Consider your specific needs regarding popularity, growth, activity, maturity, licensing and features when making your decision.

Kestra wins

Community & Popularity

Kestra significantly outpaces Dagu in community adoption with 27,928 stars compared to 3,807 stars on GitHub. This 7.3x difference suggests Kestra has a much larger and more active community. In terms of developer contributions, Kestra has 2,943 forks, indicating strong developer engagement.

Dagu wins

Growth Momentum

Dagu is growing faster, adding 77 stars in the last 30 days (+2.1%) against adding 445 stars for Kestra (+1.6%). Dagu is the smaller project of the two, so it is closing the gap rather than extending a lead.

Comparable

Development Activity

Both projects show recent activity, with Dagu last updated 12 hours ago and Kestra 10 hours ago.

Kestra wins

Project Maturity

Kestra has been in development longer, starting 7 years ago, compared to Dagu which began 4 years ago. This 2.7-year head start suggests Kestra may have more mature features and established processes.

Comparable

Licensing

The projects use different licenses: Dagu is licensed under GPL-3.0 while Kestra uses Apache-2.0. Consider the licensing requirements when choosing for your project.

Comparable

Use Cases & Features

Both tools serve similar use cases in Workflow Orchestration. However, they also have distinct specializations: Kestra extends into ETL & Data Integration.

Comparable

Hosting & Deployment

Both Dagu and Kestra offer self-hosting capabilities, giving you full control over your data and infrastructure.

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