ToolJet vs Windmill
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted automation & workflows options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
ToolJet
Low-code platform for building and automating business tools
VS
Windmill
Developer platform for scripts, flows and apps
| Feature | ToolJet | Windmill |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 99 · Excellent | 95 · Excellent |
| Category | Automation & Workflows | Automation & Workflows |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | JavaScript | Rust |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 2,048 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, helm | docker, kubernetes |
| GitHub stars | ★ 40,984 | ★ 18,022 |
| First released | 2021 | 2022 |
| Replaces | Retool, Microsoft Power Apps | Zapier, Retool |
What are ToolJet and Windmill?
ToolJet
ToolJet is an open-source low-code framework to build and deploy internal tools and workflows. It offers a visual app builder, a workflow engine and many data source connectors.
- Visual app and tool builder
- Workflow automation engine
- 50+ data source connectors
- Granular access control
Windmill
Windmill is a developer platform that turns scripts into workflows, APIs, and internal apps with scheduling and approvals. It targets engineers automating internal tooling. It is deployed via Docker with PostgreSQL.
- Scripts in Python, TypeScript and more
- Auto-generated UIs for scripts
- Flows with branching and retries
- Fast Rust execution engine
ToolJet vs Windmill: key differences
ToolJet is written in JavaScript, while Windmill is built with Rust. Windmill is the lighter option, starting around 1,024 MB of RAM against 2,048 MB for ToolJet. ToolJet has the considerably larger community, at 40,984 GitHub stars versus 18,022.
Why pick each one
Choose ToolJet if…
- Rich connector library
- Active development
Watch out for
- Heavy resource requirements
Choose Windmill if…
- Great for developer automation
- Fast and scalable
- Code-first approach
Watch out for
- More technical than no-code tools
- Requires Postgres
Frequently asked questions
Is ToolJet or Windmill better?
Neither is universally better. ToolJet has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are ToolJet and Windmill free and open-source?
Yes. ToolJet is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Windmill under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run ToolJet and Windmill with Docker?
ToolJet: yes. Windmill: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, ToolJet or Windmill?
Windmill has the smaller minimum footprint at 1,024 MB of RAM, compared to about 2,048 MB for ToolJet. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.