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10 top picks · 3 audience rankings

Best open source workflow automation tools

The best open source workflow automation tool is Apache Airflow (Apache-2.0, 47,293 GitHub stars, Docker image). changedetection.io is the runner-up, and Kestra stands out for its Java codebase.

n8n ranks higher on these signals but is source-available, not open source. This page also breaks the picks down by team size and use: Apache Airflow leads for startups, small business, enterprise and solo developers.

Updated · data from GitHub, refreshed daily

Top picks

  1. Rank 1:

    n8n

    n8n-io/n8n

    Free node based Workflow Automation Tool. Easily automate tasks across different services.

    Active · last commit Oct 28, 2026

    FeaturedSource-availableAutomation & WorkflowsTypeScriptDocker

    Stands out for the most GitHub stars. n8n has 208,840 GitHub stars, is source-available under the Sustainable Use License 1.0 (not an open-source license), ships a Docker image and had 10,360 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier and IFTTT.

  2. Rank 2:

    Apache Airflow

    apache/airflow

    Platform to programmatically author, schedule, and monitor workflows.

    Active · last commit Oct 28, 2026

    Automation & WorkflowsPythonDocker

    Stands out for a permissive Apache-2.0 license. Apache Airflow has 47,293 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 8,771 commits in the last year.

  3. Rank 3:

    changedetection.io

    dgtlmoon/changedetection.io

    Stay up-to-date with web-site content changes.

    Active · last commit Oct 27, 2026

    Automation & WorkflowsPythonDocker

    changedetection.io has 35,342 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 663 commits in the last year.

At a glance

Open source workflow automation tools compared

Ranked on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses and recent commits across the 31 apps in the automation & workflows category. Projects with fewer than 12 commits in the last 12 months rank below every more active project.

Top 10 picks compared, data as of Oct 28, 2026
AppStands out forLicenseGitHub starsCommits (12 mo)Last commitDocker image
n8nthe most GitHub starssource-available, Sustainable Use License 1.0208,84010,360Oct 28, 2026Yes
Apache Airflowa permissive Apache-2.0 licenseApache-2.047,2938,771Oct 28, 2026Yes
changedetection.io–Apache-2.035,342663Oct 27, 2026Yes
Kestraits Java codebaseApache-2.030,0445,218Oct 28, 2026Yes
Activepiecesa permissive MIT licenseMIT25,2586,366Oct 28, 2026Yes
Temporal–MIT24,0322,125Oct 28, 2026Yes
Huginn–MIT50,160468Oct 26, 2026No
Windmill–AGPL-3.018,3034,656Oct 28, 2026Yes
Leon–MIT17,6171,343Oct 28, 2026No
Gotenberg–MIT13,465396Oct 27, 2026Yes

1 of 4 · 10 picks

Top picks

10 of the 31 apps in the automation & workflows category.

  1. 1

    n8n

    Free node based Workflow Automation Tool. Easily automate tasks across different services.

    Stands out for the most GitHub stars. n8n has 208,840 GitHub stars, is source-available under the Sustainable Use License 1.0 (not an open-source license), ships a Docker image and had 10,360 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier and IFTTT.

  2. 2

    Apache Airflow

    Platform to programmatically author, schedule, and monitor workflows.

    Stands out for a permissive Apache-2.0 license. Apache Airflow has 47,293 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 8,771 commits in the last year.

  3. 3

    changedetection.io

    Stay up-to-date with web-site content changes.

    changedetection.io has 35,342 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 663 commits in the last year.

  4. 4

    Kestra

    Event-driven, language-agnostic platform to create, schedule, and monitor workflows. In code. Coordinate data pipelines and tasks such as ETL and ELT.

    Stands out for its Java codebase. Kestra has 30,044 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 5,218 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier.

  5. 5

    Activepieces

    No-code business automation tool like Zapier or Tray. For example, you can send a Slack notification for each new Trello card.

    AI-nativeStands out for a permissive MIT license. Activepieces has 25,258 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 6,366 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier and IFTTT.

  6. 6

    Temporal

    Durable execution platform for reliable workflows and background jobs.

    Temporal has 24,032 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 2,125 commits in the last year.

  7. 7

    Huginn

    Build agents that monitor and act on your behalf.

    Huginn has 50,160 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license and had 468 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier and IFTTT.

  8. 8

    Windmill

    Fast workflow engine and internal tool builder that turns scripts into UIs and automations.

    AI-nativeWindmill has 18,303 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 4,656 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier.

  9. 9

    Leon

    Personal assistant who can live on your server.

    AI-nativeLeon has 17,617 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license and had 1,343 commits in the last year.

  10. 10

    Gotenberg

    Developer-friendly API to interact with powerful tools like Chromium and LibreOffice for converting numerous document formats (HTML, Markdown, Word, Excel, etc.) into PDF files, and more.

    Gotenberg has 13,465 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 396 commits in the last year.

2 of 4 · 5 picks

Which open source workflow automation tool is best for startups?

For startups, Apache Airflow ranks first (Apache-2.0, 47,293 GitHub stars), followed by n8n (source-available) and changedetection.io. Ranked for startups on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses, project websites and recent commits.

  1. 1

    Apache Airflow

    Platform to programmatically author, schedule, and monitor workflows.

    Apache Airflow has 47,293 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 8,771 commits in the last year. For startups it also scores on a Docker image, a permissive license (Apache-2.0), a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

  2. 2

    n8n

    Free node based Workflow Automation Tool. Easily automate tasks across different services.

    n8n has 208,840 GitHub stars, is source-available under the Sustainable Use License 1.0 (not an open-source license), ships a Docker image and had 10,360 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier and IFTTT. For startups it also scores on a Docker image, a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

  3. 3

    changedetection.io

    Stay up-to-date with web-site content changes.

    changedetection.io has 35,342 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 663 commits in the last year. For startups it also scores on a Docker image, a permissive license (Apache-2.0), a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

  4. 4

    Kestra

    Event-driven, language-agnostic platform to create, schedule, and monitor workflows. In code. Coordinate data pipelines and tasks such as ETL and ELT.

    Kestra has 30,044 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 5,218 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier. For startups it also scores on a Docker image, a permissive license (Apache-2.0), a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

  5. 5

    Activepieces

    No-code business automation tool like Zapier or Tray. For example, you can send a Slack notification for each new Trello card.

    AI-nativeActivepieces has 25,258 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 6,366 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier and IFTTT. For startups it also scores on a Docker image, a permissive license (MIT), a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

3 of 4 · 5 picks

Which open source workflow automation tool is best for small business and solo developers?

For small business and solo developers, Apache Airflow ranks first (Apache-2.0, 47,293 GitHub stars), followed by n8n (source-available) and changedetection.io. Ranked for small business and solo developers (the same order for each) on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses and recent commits.

  1. 1

    n8n

    Free node based Workflow Automation Tool. Easily automate tasks across different services.

    n8n has 208,840 GitHub stars, is source-available under the Sustainable Use License 1.0 (not an open-source license), ships a Docker image and had 10,360 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier and IFTTT, and appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it. For small business it also scores on a Docker image, a project website, a commit in the last 90 days and an appsgit deploy guide.

  2. 2

    Apache Airflow

    Platform to programmatically author, schedule, and monitor workflows.

    Apache Airflow has 47,293 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 8,771 commits in the last year; appsgit has a step-by-step deploy guide for it. For small business it also scores on a Docker image, an open-source license, a project website, a commit in the last 90 days and an appsgit deploy guide.

  3. 3

    changedetection.io

    Stay up-to-date with web-site content changes.

    changedetection.io has 35,342 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 663 commits in the last year. For small business it also scores on a Docker image, an open-source license, a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

  4. 4

    Kestra

    Event-driven, language-agnostic platform to create, schedule, and monitor workflows. In code. Coordinate data pipelines and tasks such as ETL and ELT.

    Kestra has 30,044 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 5,218 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier. For small business it also scores on a Docker image, an open-source license, a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

  5. 5

    Activepieces

    No-code business automation tool like Zapier or Tray. For example, you can send a Slack notification for each new Trello card.

    AI-nativeActivepieces has 25,258 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 6,366 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier and IFTTT. For small business it also scores on a Docker image, an open-source license, a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

4 of 4 · 5 picks

Which open source workflow automation tool is best for enterprise?

For enterprise, Apache Airflow ranks first (Apache-2.0, 47,293 GitHub stars), followed by n8n (source-available) and Huginn. Ranked for enterprise on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, open-source licenses and recent commits.

  1. 1

    n8n

    Free node based Workflow Automation Tool. Easily automate tasks across different services.

    n8n has 208,840 GitHub stars, is source-available under the Sustainable Use License 1.0 (not an open-source license), ships a Docker image and had 10,360 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier and IFTTT. For enterprise it also scores on a commit in the last 90 days.

  2. 2

    Apache Airflow

    Platform to programmatically author, schedule, and monitor workflows.

    Apache Airflow has 47,293 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 8,771 commits in the last year. For enterprise it also scores on an open-source license and a commit in the last 90 days.

  3. 3

    Huginn

    Build agents that monitor and act on your behalf.

    Huginn has 50,160 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license and had 468 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier and IFTTT. For enterprise it also scores on an open-source license and a commit in the last 90 days.

  4. 4

    changedetection.io

    Stay up-to-date with web-site content changes.

    changedetection.io has 35,342 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 663 commits in the last year. For enterprise it also scores on an open-source license and a commit in the last 90 days.

  5. 5

    Kestra

    Event-driven, language-agnostic platform to create, schedule, and monitor workflows. In code. Coordinate data pipelines and tasks such as ETL and ELT.

    Kestra has 30,044 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 5,218 commits in the last year; it replaces Zapier. For enterprise it also scores on an open-source license and a commit in the last 90 days.

FAQ

Questions and answers

Still curious? Email info@appsgit.com.

Is n8n free?

Not by the OSI definition. n8n is source-available rather than open source: its code is public under the Sustainable Use License 1.0, which is not an OSI-approved open-source license. The Sustainable Use License allows use and changes for your own internal business or personal purposes, but not reselling the software or offering it as a paid hosted service. Check the license in the repository before using it commercially.

Can I self-host these workflow automation tools with Docker?

Yes, 8 of the 10 picks. n8n, Apache Airflow and changedetection.io publish Docker images, so you can run them on a VPS or home server with Docker Compose. The others install from their own packages or source; follow each project's install guide.

Are all of these workflow automation tools open source?

9 of the 10 apps on this list are open source; 1 is source-available. Source-available licenses add conditions, such as limits on hosted or commercial use, so read them before you deploy.

Which of these workflow automation tools is the most actively developed?

n8n, with 10,360 commits in the last 12 months and a latest release, n8n@2.45.5, from October 2026. Activity is a good sign that bugs and security issues get fixed.

How is this list ranked?

Ranked on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses and recent commits across the 31 apps in the automation & workflows category. Projects with fewer than 12 commits in the last 12 months rank below every more active project.

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