Activepieces vs Trigger.dev
Short answer
Activepieces: Open-source Zapier alternative with AI agents, MCP and human-in-the-loop steps. Trigger.dev: Platform for background jobs, scheduled tasks and long-running AI agent workflows written in TypeScript. Both are in our Workflow automation with AI category.
Choose Activepieces if you want: larger community (25.4k vs 16.7k GitHub stars) and simpler deploy (one container vs a multi-container stack).
Choose Trigger.dev if you want: fewer license conditions (Permissive vs Open core).
Activepieces publishes no official RAM figure, so we cannot compare hosting cost directly.
Last updated · computed from each project's official docs and live GitHub data · sources
Activepieces vs Trigger.dev side by side
| Activepieces | Trigger.dev | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Workflow automation with AI | Workflow automation with AI |
| What it is | Open-source Zapier alternative with AI agents, MCP and human-in-the-loop steps. | Platform for background jobs, scheduled tasks and long-running AI agent workflows written in TypeScript. |
| License | MIT (core) + Activepieces Enterprise License (ee directories) | Apache-2.0 |
| License type | Open core | Permissive |
| License conditions | Everything outside packages/ee and packages/server/api/src/app/ee is MIT. Code in those directories needs a commercial license. | Permissive. Internal and commercial use allowed; keep license and notices. |
| Status | Active | Active |
| GitHub stars | 25.4k | 16.7k |
| Last commit | Nov 4, 2026 | Oct 31, 2026 |
| Latest release | 0.92.3-hotfix.2 | v4.8.3 |
| Minimum hardware | Not published | 3 vCPU · 6 GB RAM |
| Recommended hardware | Not published | Not published |
| RAM measured by us | 1.3 GiB idle, 2.4 GiB working (our test, v0.92.3, Oct 22, 2026) | Not tested yet |
| GPU | Not required / not stated | Not required / not stated |
| Est. server cost | from €35.99/mo (based on our test, not official) | from €35.99/mo |
| Deploy method | Docker (single container, embedded DB) | Docker Compose |
| Known gotchas | 3 listed | 4 listed |
| Telemetry | On by default | Not documented |
| Calls home by default | Not documented | Not documented |
| SSO (OIDC / SAML / LDAP) | Paid / enterprise only (SAML paid) | Not documented |
| Audit log | Paid / enterprise only | Not documented |
| RBAC | Paid / enterprise only | Not documented |
| Details | Full Activepieces guide → | Full Trigger.dev guide → |
Key differences
- License: Activepieces: MIT (core) + Activepieces Enterprise License (ee directories) (Open core). Trigger.dev: Apache-2.0 (Permissive).
- Official hardware: Activepieces: not published. Trigger.dev: minimum 3 vCPU · 6 GB RAM.
- Est. server cost: Activepieces: not estimated (no official RAM figure). Trigger.dev: from €35.99/mo.
- Deploy: Activepieces: Docker (single container, embedded DB) · single container. Trigger.dev: Docker Compose · multi-container stack.
- GitHub stars: Activepieces: 25.4k. Trigger.dev: 16.7k.
- Last commit: Activepieces: Nov 4, 2026. Trigger.dev: Oct 31, 2026.
- Latest release: Activepieces: 0.92.3-hotfix.2 (Oct 28, 2026). Trigger.dev: v4.8.3 (Oct 30, 2026).
Same for both: Category: Workflow automation with AI; GPU: not required or not stated; Status: Active.
Activepieces vs Trigger.dev: FAQ
Activepieces or Trigger.dev: which should a small business choose?
Choose Activepieces if you want: larger community (25.4k vs 16.7k GitHub stars) and simpler deploy (one container vs a multi-container stack). Choose Trigger.dev if you want: fewer license conditions (Permissive vs Open core). Activepieces publishes no official RAM figure, so we cannot compare hosting cost directly.
Which is cheaper to self-host, Activepieces or Trigger.dev?
Activepieces: not estimated (no official RAM figure). Trigger.dev: from €35.99/mo. Our estimate is the cheapest Hetzner Cloud plan that meets each project's official RAM and vCPU figure; it covers the server only.
How much hardware do Activepieces and Trigger.dev need?
Activepieces: not published. Trigger.dev: minimum 3 vCPU · 6 GB RAM.
What is the license difference between Activepieces and Trigger.dev?
Activepieces: MIT (core) + Activepieces Enterprise License (ee directories) (Open core). Everything outside packages/ee and packages/server/api/src/app/ee is MIT. Code in those directories needs a commercial license. Trigger.dev: Apache-2.0 (Permissive). Permissive. Internal and commercial use allowed; keep license and notices. This is a summary, not legal advice.
Is Activepieces or Trigger.dev more actively maintained?
Activepieces: Active, last commit Nov 4, 2026. Trigger.dev: Active, last commit Oct 31, 2026. GitHub data refreshed Nov 4, 2026.
Which is easier to deploy, Activepieces or Trigger.dev?
Activepieces installs via Docker (single container, embedded DB) (single container); Trigger.dev via Docker Compose (multi-container stack). Activepieces lists 3 known gotchas and Trigger.dev lists 4; see each app page.
Related
- Activepieces self-hosting guide · Trigger.dev self-hosting guide
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Sources
- Activepieces GitHub repository: github.com/activepieces/activepieces
- Activepieces documentation, Activepieces hardware requirements, Activepieces deploy instructions: www.activepieces.com/docs/install/options/docker
- Activepieces license: github.com/activepieces/activepieces/blob/main/LICENSE
- Trigger.dev GitHub repository: github.com/triggerdotdev/trigger.dev
- Trigger.dev documentation: trigger.dev/docs/self-hosting/overview
- Trigger.dev license: github.com/triggerdotdev/trigger.dev/blob/main/LICENSE
- Trigger.dev hardware requirements, Trigger.dev deploy instructions: trigger.dev/docs/self-hosting/docker
- Hetzner Cloud pricing used for cost estimates (read 2026-11-01): www.hetzner.com/cloud/regular-performance
- GitHub REST API (stars, commits, releases): docs.github.com/en/rest
Every value is generated from the same verified data as the app pages. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.