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Head-to-head · Workflow Orchestration Software

Kestra vs Conductor

  • Updated Oct 2026
  • Both researched from official sources
  • 6 checks side by side
Higher score Kestra #9 in Workflow Orchestration Software 8.7/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 5 of 5 features Visit Kestra
Conductor #12 in Workflow Orchestration Software 8.4/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 4 of 5 features Visit Conductor

Kestra leads on 0 checks, Conductor on 0, and 6 are even. Who comes out ahead on the 6 yes/no, price and count checks where we have data for both products. The editor score weighs everything else too.

Our verdict

  • Highest scoreKestra · 8.7/10
  • Free planboth
  • Most featuresKestra · 5 of 5

Kestra scores higher on our rubric for workflow orchestration software: 8.7 against 8.4 out of 10; our editors rank them #9 and #12.

On deployment model, Kestra gives you Hybrid where Conductor offers Self-hosted.

Kestra is the better fit for open-source orchestration with broad integrations. Conductor is the better fit for polyglot durable workflow orchestration.

  • Kestra fits best

    Open-source orchestration with broad integrations

  • Conductor fits best

    Polyglot durable workflow orchestration

Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.

Side by side

Feature Kestra 8.7/10 Visit ↗ Conductor 8.4/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score 8.7 8.4
Ranking #9 in Workflow Orchestration Software #12 in Workflow Orchestration Software
Best for Open-source orchestration with broad integrations Polyglot durable workflow orchestration
Pricing model Free Free
Starting price Free Free plan
Free plan ✓ ✓
Free trial — —
Deployment Cloud, Self-hosted Self-hosted, Cloud
Platforms Web Web
Support Email, Community, Docs · 24/7 Community, Docs
Integrations 2,000+ integrations 9 integrations
Built for Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features Kestra 5/5 · Conductor 4/5
Visual workflow builder ✓ (best) Not checked yet
Event triggers ✓ ✓
Automatic retries ✓ ✓
Execution observability ✓ ✓
Human approvals ✓ ✓
Specs
Deployment model Hybrid Self-hosted
Our review
Pros
  • 1,200+ plugins connect workflows across cloud, data, and developer tools.
  • Visual and YAML workflow authoring supports both no-code and declarative approaches.
  • Retries, replay, approvals, logs, metrics, and version history support operations.
  • Durable execution persists task progress for recovery after failures or restarts.
  • SDKs support Java, Python, Go, JavaScript, C#, Ruby, and Rust.
  • Retries, event routing, approvals, diagrams, logs, and recovery actions are built in.
Cons
  • Paid tiers use contact-sales or access-request paths.
  • Advanced governance features are available in Enterprise Edition.
  • Kestra Cloud uses a pay-as-you-scale pricing model.
  • Self-hosted deployment leaves infrastructure operation with the adopting team.
  • The OSS distribution does not include the visual editor described for hosted editions.
  • Its broad workflow model may be more than teams need for simple automations.
Our verdict

Kestra is a declarative workflow orchestration platform for data engineers, software engineers, and platform teams. Workflows can be created in YAML or through a no-code editor, then run across languages and infrastructure. Scheduling,…

Read the review →

Conductor is an open-source workflow orchestration platform for teams coordinating microservices, AI agents, and durable workflow graphs. It defines versioned task graphs, runs them across services and workers, and persists task progress…

Read the review →
  1. KestraWorkflow Orchestration Software 8.7Free plan
  2. ConductorWorkflow Orchestration Software 8.4Free plan

Strengths and trade-offs

  • Kestra — where it wins

    • 1,200+ plugins connect workflows across cloud, data, and developer tools.
    • Visual and YAML workflow authoring supports both no-code and declarative approaches.
    • Retries, replay, approvals, logs, metrics, and version history support operations.

    Where it doesn't

    • Paid tiers use contact-sales or access-request paths.
    • Advanced governance features are available in Enterprise Edition.
    • Kestra Cloud uses a pay-as-you-scale pricing model.

  • Conductor — where it wins

    • Durable execution persists task progress for recovery after failures or restarts.
    • SDKs support Java, Python, Go, JavaScript, C#, Ruby, and Rust.
    • Retries, event routing, approvals, diagrams, logs, and recovery actions are built in.

    Where it doesn't

    • Self-hosted deployment leaves infrastructure operation with the adopting team.
    • The OSS distribution does not include the visual editor described for hosted editions.
    • Its broad workflow model may be more than teams need for simple automations.

All workflow orchestration software comparisons → · Full ranking →

Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026

Last updated · How we research and update