Alternatives / n8n
5 Best Open Source n8n Alternatives in 2026
Looking for the best open source n8n alternative? We compared 5 self-hosted workflow automation tools based on license, integrations, ease of use, and pricing.
Written by Maxime DERAME
Last updated:
Best n8n alternatives at a glance
| Alternative | Best for | License |
|---|---|---|
| ActivePieces | Closest n8n alternative | MIT (Community Edition) |
| Flowise AI | AI workflows | Apache-2.0 |
| Kestra | Data orchestration | Apache-2.0 |
| Automatisch | Simple automations | AGPL-3.0 (Community Edition) |
| ByteChef | API orchestration | Apache-2.0 (Community Edition) |
How we chose these n8n alternatives
We checked that each project has a genuine open-source license and can be self-hosted, then considered GitHub activity and how closely its workflow automation features match n8n. We also note Community Edition limits and whether cloud hosting or advanced features require payment. See our methodology for the full criteria.
Why look for a n8n alternative?
n8n's fair-code license caps self-hosted use once you scale past a single instance or resell it, and its cloud plans charge per workflow execution — a cost that climbs fast for teams running many automations. People look for alternatives when they need a fully permissive open-source license, a different execution model, or to avoid per-execution pricing entirely.
Apache-2.0 alternative to Langflow with chatflow and agentflow paradigms, embeddable chatbot widgets, and API endpoints — closer to an AI pipeline builder than a general Zapier-style tool.
Pricing: Free and open source, self-hosted; also offers a hosted cloud option.
- Purpose-built for AI agent and LLM pipelines
- Large, active community (50K+ stars)
- Not a general business-automation replacement for n8n
- Less useful if you don't need AI/LLM workflows
Kestra is an open-source, event-driven orchestration platform for data, AI, and infrastructure workflows, built around declarative YAML rather than a visual-only builder. Apache-2.0 licensed with a self-hosted core.
Pricing: Open-source core free and self-hosted; paid Enterprise Edition adds governance and RBAC.
- 1400+ plugins for data and infrastructure workflows
- Declarative YAML scales well for complex pipelines
- Steeper learning curve than visual builders
- Less suited to simple no-code automations
ActivePieces is an open-source automation platform for building no-code workflows and AI agents. The Community Edition is MIT-licensed and self-hostable via Docker; enterprise features (SSO, advanced permissions) sit behind a separate paid tier.
Pricing: Community Edition free and self-hosted; Cloud and enterprise features (SSO, advanced permissions) are paid.
- MIT license with no fair-code restrictions
- Hundreds of pre-built integrations
- Smaller plugin ecosystem than n8n
- AI-specific features are newer and less mature
Automatisch is an open-source, self-hosted workflow automation tool positioned as a lightweight Zapier alternative. The Community Edition is AGPL-3.0 licensed, with enterprise-only features under a separate license.
Pricing: Community Edition free and self-hosted; paid Cloud and enterprise tiers available.
- Simple, focused trigger-action model
- Lightweight self-hosting footprint
- Far fewer integrations than n8n
- AGPL-3.0 requires sharing modifications if you distribute it
ByteChef is an open-source, low-code platform for API orchestration, workflow automation, and AI agent integration. The core platform is Apache-2.0 licensed, with enterprise-only features under a separate license.
Pricing: Community Edition free and self-hosted; enterprise features under a separate commercial license.
- Built-in code editor (Java/JS/Python/Ruby) for custom logic
- 200+ components
- Much smaller community than n8n
- Younger project with less battle-testing
Compare n8n alternatives
| Tool | Stars | License | Self-hosted | Pricing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flowise AI | 53.3K | Apache-2.0 | Yes | Free and open source, self-hosted; also offers a hosted cloud option. |
| Kestra | 27.3K | Apache-2.0 | Yes | Open-source core free and self-hosted; paid Enterprise Edition adds governance and RBAC. |
| ActivePieces | 24.5K | MIT (Community Edition) | Yes | Community Edition free and self-hosted; Cloud and enterprise features (SSO, advanced permissions) are paid. |
| Automatisch | 13.9K | AGPL-3.0 (Community Edition) | Yes | Community Edition free and self-hosted; paid Cloud and enterprise tiers available. |
| ByteChef | 900 | Apache-2.0 (Community Edition) | Yes | Community Edition free and self-hosted; enterprise features under a separate commercial license. |
Which one should you choose?
Want n8n's visual builder without licensing limits
MIT-licensed Community Edition with a similar drag-and-drop UX and hundreds of pre-built pieces.
Building AI agent or LLM pipelines
Purpose-built for chatflows and LLM pipelines rather than general business automation.
Orchestrating data or infrastructure pipelines
Declarative YAML and 1400+ plugins suit scheduled data/infra workflows better than a visual canvas.
Just need simple trigger-action automations
Lightest-weight option if you don't need n8n's full visual complexity.
Best n8n alternative for self-hosting
Activepieces is the closest fit for teams who want a visual workflow builder they can run themselves. Its Community Edition is MIT-licensed and self-hostable; check the Activepieces comparison for its integration and feature limits.
Best n8n alternative for AI workflows
Flowise focuses on chatflows, AI agents, and LLM pipelines rather than general business automation. It is a better match when the workflow centers on AI; see the Flowise comparison for the details.