Apache Airflow vs Chadburn
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
Chadburn
Job scheduler for Docker environments using container labels
| Feature | Apache Airflow | Chadburn |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Automation & Workflows | Automation & Workflows |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Language | Python | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 4,096 MB | 32 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, helm | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 46,409 | ★ 79 |
| First released | 2015 | 2021 |
| Replaces | AWS Step Functions, Azure Data Factory | cron |
Why pick each one
Choose Chadburn if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Go
Frequently asked questions
Is Apache Airflow or Chadburn better?
Neither is universally better. Apache Airflow has the larger community, while Chadburn is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Apache Airflow and Chadburn free and open-source?
Yes. Apache Airflow is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Chadburn under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Apache Airflow and Chadburn with Docker?
Apache Airflow: yes. Chadburn: yes.