Apache Airflow vs Automa
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted automation & workflows options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Apache Airflow
Programmatically author, schedule and monitor workflows
VS
Automa
Browser automation via drag-and-drop visual workflows
| Feature | Apache Airflow | Automa |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Automation & Workflows | Automation & Workflows |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Language | Python | Vue |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 4,096 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, helm | source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 46,409 | ★ 21,543 |
| First released | 2015 | 2021 |
| Replaces | AWS Step Functions, Azure Data Factory | Zapier, UiPath |
Why pick each one
Choose Automa if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Mature project with 21.5k GitHub stars
- Written in Vue
Frequently asked questions
Is Apache Airflow or Automa better?
Neither is universally better. Apache Airflow has the larger community, while Automa is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Apache Airflow and Automa free and open-source?
Yes. Apache Airflow is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Automa under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Apache Airflow and Automa with Docker?
Apache Airflow: yes. Automa: check the project docs for container support.