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Best Kubernetes Automation & Workflows for self-hosting

The 16 best Kubernetes automation & workflows you can self-host, ranked by community traction.

Apache Airflow

Automation & Workflows

Programmatically author, schedule and monitor workflows

Replaces AWS Step Functions, Azure Data Factory

★ 47.2k Hard setup Apache-2.0

ToolJet

Automation & Workflows

Low-code platform for building and automating business tools

Replaces Retool, Microsoft Power Apps

★ 41.1k Medium setup AGPL-3.0

Appsmith

Automation & Workflows

Open-source low-code platform for building internal apps

Replaces Retool, Microsoft Power Apps

★ 41.1k Medium setup Apache-2.0

Conductor OSS

Automation & Workflows

Microservices and workflow orchestration engine

Replaces AWS Step Functions, Camunda

★ 32.3k Hard setup Apache-2.0

Kestra

Automation & Workflows

Declarative orchestration and scheduling platform

Replaces Zapier, Make

★ 29.6k Hard setup Apache-2.0

Budibase

Automation & Workflows

Low-code platform to build internal tools and automations

Replaces Microsoft Power Apps, Retool

★ 28.3k Medium setup GPL-3.0

Prefect

Automation & Workflows

Modern workflow orchestration for data and Python pipelines

Replaces AWS Step Functions, Azure Data Factory

★ 24k Medium setup Apache-2.0

Temporal

Automation & Workflows

Durable execution platform for reliable distributed workflows

Replaces AWS Step Functions, Azure Logic Apps

★ 23.7k Hard setup MIT

Dagster

Automation & Workflows

Data orchestrator for the full development lifecycle

Replaces AWS Step Functions, Azure Data Factory

★ 16.3k Medium setup Apache-2.0

Apache DolphinScheduler

Automation & Workflows

Distributed visual workflow scheduling platform

Replaces AWS Step Functions, Azure Data Factory

★ 14.5k Hard setup Apache-2.0

Flowable

Automation & Workflows

Lightweight business process engine with BPMN and DMN

Replaces Microsoft Power Automate, Camunda

★ 9.6k Hard setup Apache-2.0

Mage

Automation & Workflows

Open-source data pipeline tool for transforming and integrating data

Replaces Azure Data Factory, Apache Airflow

★ 8.8k Medium setup Apache-2.0

Flyte

Automation & Workflows

Kubernetes-native workflow orchestration for data and ML

Replaces Apache Airflow

★ 7.7k Hard setup Apache-2.0

Actions Runner Controller

Automation & Workflows

Run self-hosted GitHub Actions runners on Kubernetes

Replaces GitHub-hosted runners

★ 6.6k Hard setup Apache-2.0

StackStorm

Automation & Workflows

Event-driven automation, often called IFTTT for ops

Replaces Zapier, AWS Systems Manager

★ 6.5k Hard setup Apache-2.0

Apache NiFi

Automation & Workflows

Visual dataflow automation and routing system

Replaces Azure Data Factory, Zapier

★ 6.3k Hard setup Apache-2.0

At a glance

App	Deploy effort	Difficulty	Min. RAM	License	★ Stars
Apache Airflow	Under-an-hour setup	Hard	4,096 MB	Apache-2.0	47,169
ToolJet	Under-an-hour setup	Medium	2,048 MB	AGPL-3.0	41,090
Appsmith	Under-an-hour setup	Medium	2,048 MB	Apache-2.0	41,060
Conductor OSS	Under-an-hour setup	Hard	2,048 MB	Apache-2.0	32,296
Kestra	Under-an-hour setup	Hard	1,024 MB	Apache-2.0	29,559
Budibase	Under-an-hour setup	Medium	2,048 MB	GPL-3.0	28,333
Prefect	Under-an-hour setup	Medium	1,024 MB	Apache-2.0	24,017
Temporal	Under-an-hour setup	Hard	2,048 MB	MIT	23,678
Dagster	Under-an-hour setup	Medium	2,048 MB	Apache-2.0	16,272
Apache DolphinScheduler	Under-an-hour setup	Hard	2,048 MB	Apache-2.0	14,518

Quick picks

Most adopted: Apache Airflow (47,169 GitHub stars).
Lightest footprint: Actions Runner Controller (from 512 MB RAM, against 4,096 MB for the heaviest here).
Licensing: 13 of 16 use Apache-2.0; check the rest individually if you plan to modify and redistribute.

Every option here is open-source and self-hostable, tagged Kubernetes within the automation & workflows category. Deploy effort is graded from published container recipes, not vendor claims — see the methodology.

Keep exploring

All Automation & Workflows Easiest Automation & Workflows to self-host How to choose automation platform: the Automation & Workflows buyer's guide

Head-to-head: Kubernetes automation & workflows