Kestra vs Windmill

Comprehensive side-by-side comparison — features, pricing, performance, and more.

Updated October 2026

Kestra

Kestra Technologies

One orchestrator for every workflow, from data to AI.

Open Source

77% verification coverage

Windmill

Windmill Labs

Code-first orchestration platform for internal software

Open Source

86% verification coverage

Trust & Reliability

Kestra

Customers (per vendor):JPMorgan Chase, Bloomberg, Apple +6

GDPR

SOC 2

Windmill

Users:1K-10K

Customers (per vendor):Zoom, Kahoot, Investing.com +7

GDPR

SOC 2

HIPAA

Overall Winner: Windmill

8.0/10 vs Kestra at 7.0/10

Leads in:

Customization

Support

Compliance & Data Protection

Scores are AI-estimated from publicly available data — not an independent test or a verified user rating. How we rank →

AI Comparison Summary

Kestra

7.0

avg score

Windmill

8.0

avg score

Windmill leads overall — particularly in Compliance & Data Protection and Performance.

Based on 7 dimensions

Scores are AI-estimated from publicly available data — not an independent test or a verified user rating. How we rank →

Overall Winner

Windmill

8.0 / 10

Kestra

Best For

Data Engineers building and managing reliable data pipelines

Software Engineers automating CI/CD and operational workflows

Platform Engineers standardizing infrastructure automation

Mid-market to Enterprise companies needing cross-cloud ETL

Windmill

Best For

Engineers seeking full code flexibility and control over infrastructure

Teams building and collaborating on internal software

Organizations needing to automate business-critical tasks and automations

Companies requiring self-hostable orchestration for data pipelines and AI workflows

* Verdict is based on our algorithmic scoring of publicly available data. Learn about our methodology

Kestra is best for

🎧Customer Support9.0🤖Automation & Agents7.7💻Coding & Dev6.0

Windmill is best for

🎧Customer Support8.0🤖Automation & Agents7.2✍️Writing & Content6.0

Filter by your use case:

Limitations

Kestra

Cons

SCIM directory sync is not available in Kestra Cloud
External secrets managers are not available in Kestra Cloud
Read-only vault access is not available in Kestra Cloud
Worker isolation is not available in Open Source edition
Audit logs are not available in Open Source edition
Policies are not available in Open Source edition

Windmill

Cons

Free and Open-source tier has a 10 GiB workspace object storage quota
Free and Open-source tier limits email triggers to 100 emails per day
Free and Open-source tier does not include Oracle DB and MS SQL runtimes
Free and Open-source tier lacks advanced observability features like audit logs and unlimited job run retention
Free and Open-source tier does not support SAML & SCIM for SSO

Weighted Score — Adjust What Matters to You

Pick a profile or drag sliders — scores and radar update instantly on the right.

Quick profiles:

Ease of Use5

Customization5

Support5

Integration5

Compliance & Data Protection5

Performance5

Planning Quality5

Dimension Comparison

Kestra

7.0

/ 10

Windmill

8.0

/ 10

Clear winner

Dimension Breakdown

Ease of Use

How intuitive is onboarding, UI navigation, and day-to-day usage for the target audience?

Kestra

4.0▲ +1.0

Windmill

3.0

Customization

Calculated

How much can users tailor workflows, settings, prompts, or outputs to their needs?

Kestra

9.0

Windmill

10.0▲ +1.0

Support

How strong is the documentation, customer support, community, and learning resources?

Kestra

9.0

Windmill

10.0▲ +1.0

Integration

Calculated

How well does it connect with other tools, APIs, and workflows?

Kestra

9.0

Windmill

9.0

Compliance & Data Protection

Calculated

Compliance certifications and data-protection posture, counted from ten verified signals: SOC 2 Type II, GDPR compliance, HIPAA, WCAG AA/AAA, PII redaction, licensed-only training, a published sub-processor list, a downloadable DPA, not training on user data, and a documented deletion path

Kestra

6.0

Windmill

8.0▲ +2.0

Performance

Calculated

Latency + throughput speed

Kestra

5.0

Windmill

8.0▲ +3.0

Planning Quality

Calculated

Multi-step planning depth + replanning capability

Kestra

—

Windmill

—

Calculated = derived from structured signals (integration count, API/open-source config, compliance certs, response-time). AI = LLM-assessed from public website content. Methodology

Task Performance

Kestra

Task

Windmill

9.0

Workflow Building

9.0

Trigger Variety

10.0

Action Library

8.0

Error Handling

9.0

Scheduling Capability

9.0

8.0

Conditional Logic

9.0

Api Connectivity

9.0

8.0

Monitoring Logging

9.0

Multi Step Chains

9.0

7.0

Autonomous Execution

7.0

6.0

Agent Coordination

5.0

7.0

Error Recovery

8.0

* Task scores (1–10) are algorithmically generated from publicly available data.

Data is sourced from public information and vendor websites. It may not always be up-to-date — verify pricing and features directly with the vendor before purchasing.Report inaccuracy

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is better, Kestra or Windmill?

Both are strong options. Kestra is a strong choice, while Windmill is a strong choice. The best choice depends on your specific use case, budget, and workflow requirements.

Is Kestra cheaper than Windmill?

Kestra starts at free (open_source model). Windmill starts at free (open_source model). Use the Cost Calculator above for a detailed estimate.

What are the main differences between Kestra and Windmill?

Kestra — "One orchestrator for every workflow, from data to AI.". Windmill — "Code-first orchestration platform for internal software". Key differences include their pricing models, platform support, integrations, and technical capabilities. See the Feature Comparison table above for a complete side-by-side breakdown.

Can I use Kestra and Windmill together?

Yes, many teams use both tools together for different purposes. Use the Stack Builder section above to combine Kestra and Windmill with other tools and save your AI toolkit.

Does Kestra or Windmill have a free plan?

Kestra is a paid tool. Windmill is a paid tool. Always verify current pricing directly with the vendor.

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