Cadence
Cadence: A self-hosted engine for durable, code-defined workflows with strong recovery controls. Ranked #22 of 36 in Workflow Orchestration Software by our editors (7.3/10); pricing: Open source; best for self-hosted durable code workflows.
At a glance
- Editor score7.3 / 10
- PricingOpen source
- Best forSelf-hosted durable code workflows
- Paid fromNone
- Human approvalsYes
- Founded2017
- Facts checked20 Sep 2026
Where it wins
- Durable timers, state recovery, retries, and failure handling
- Signals, approvals, event-driven branching, and Saga compensation
- Pluggable persistence with SQL-like workflow search and execution history
Where it doesn't
- Self-hosted deployment requires infrastructure ownership
- Visual workflow authoring is limited
- Integration breadth is limited compared with broader orchestration platforms
Our verdict on Cadence
Cadence is an open-source workflow orchestration engine for developers building fault-tolerant, stateful distributed applications. Workflows are defined in Go, Java, or Python, while Cadence manages durable state, timers, task queues, retries, and recovery across failures. It suits teams that want code-defined, long-running workflows deployed locally, with Docker, or on Kubernetes. The platform is self-hosted and supports web, Linux, API, and self-hosted deployments.
Its strongest area is durable workflow control. Configurable activity and workflow retries, durable timers, state recovery, external signals, and event-driven branching cover workflows that must continue across failures or wait for outside input. Human-approval patterns support processes that pause for decisions, while Saga compensation patterns provide a structure for handling distributed operations that need corrective steps. Execution history and the Web UI add visibility, and advanced workflow search uses SQL-like queries. A CLI supports operations for workflows, task lists, domains, and clusters.
Cadence also gives teams control over persistence and deployment. Pluggable persistence supports Cassandra, MySQL, PostgreSQL, and OpenSearch, allowing the storage layer to fit an existing architecture. Its open-source model avoids a paid plan structure, but the self-hosted model places deployment and operation within the adopting team’s environment. Cadence is a strong fit for engineering teams comfortable defining workflows in code and operating the surrounding platform. Teams that primarily want visual authoring or a broad integration catalog should consider an alternative with greater emphasis in those areas.
Cadence pricing
Cadence fact sheet
| Free plan | Not verified |
|---|---|
| Paid from | None |
| Visual workflow builder | Not verified |
| Event triggers | Yes |
| Automatic retries | Yes |
| Execution observability | Yes |
| Deployment model | Self-hosted |
| Human approvals | Yes |
| Deployment | Self-hosted |
| Platforms | Web, Linux |
| Support | Community, Docs |
| Built for | Mid-market, Enterprise (editorial estimate) |
| Pricing | Open source |
| Website | cadenceworkflow.io |
| Facts checked | 20 Sep 2026 |
Alternatives to Cadence
- AWS Step FunctionsA strong AWS-native choice for state-machine orchestration and event-driven automation.9.3
- Apache AirflowA mature self-hosted choice for teams building Python-based data workflows.9.2
- BMC Control-MA broad, governed orchestration suite for complex enterprise workloads, priced for large organizations.9.1
See all Cadence alternatives →
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Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
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