What is the main difference between Kestra and Windmill?

Kestra and Windmill 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: Kestra or Windmill?

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

Can I migrate from Kestra to Windmill?

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

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Kestra vs Windmill

Learn how Kestra and Windmill 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.

Kestra

A powerful, open-source orchestrator for building, running, and monitoring complex data pipelines and workflows

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Stars
26,774
Forks
2,565
Last commit
5 hours ago
Repository age
7 years
License
Apache-2.0
Self-hosted
Yes

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Auto-fetched 44 minutes ago.

Windmill

Powerful, self-hosted platform for building and running workflows, scripts, and apps with code-first approach and collaborative features.

Visit Windmill Read more

Stars
16,386
Forks
942
Last commit
47 minutes ago
Repository age
4 years
Self-hosted
Yes

View Repository

Auto-fetched 43 minutes ago.

Detailed Comparison

Kestra appears to have several advantages over Windmill, particularly in popularity, maturity and licensing. Consider your specific needs regarding popularity, activity, technology, maturity, licensing and features when making your decision.

Kestra wins

Community & Popularity

Kestra leads in popularity with 26,774 stars vs 16,386 stars for Windmill. The 63% higher star count indicates stronger community adoption. In terms of developer contributions, Kestra has 2,565 forks, indicating strong developer engagement.

Comparable

Development Activity

Both projects show recent activity, with Kestra last updated 5 hours ago and Windmill 47 minutes ago.

Comparable

Technology Stack

Both tools share common technology foundations, being built with JavaScript, Bash, Typescript, Python. However, they differ in their additional technology choices: Kestra uses JSX, SCSS, Vue, Java while Windmill leverages CSS, Golang, Rust, C, Objective-C, SvelteKit.

Kestra wins

Project Maturity

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

Kestra wins

Licensing

Kestra is licensed under Apache-2.0, while Windmill's license terms are not publicly specified.

Comparable

Use Cases & Features

Both tools serve similar use cases in Workflow Orchestration. However, they also have distinct specializations: Kestra also focuses on ETL & Data Integration while Windmill extends into PaaS & Deployment Tools, Workflow Automation.

Comparable