Apache Airflow vs Pipedream: Features, Pricing and User Reviews 2026

Apache Airflow is completely free and open source. You can download, install, and use it without any licensing costs or usage fees. This makes it accessible for individuals, startups, and large enterprises alike.

Since it is open source, you only pay for the infrastructure where you run it. This could be your own servers, cloud virtual machines, or container platforms. The cost depends on your computing needs and how many workflows you run.

If you prefer a managed solution, several companies offer hosted Airflow services. Astronomer provides Astro, a managed platform built on Airflow with pricing starting around $100-300 per month for small teams. Amazon offers MWAA (Managed Workflows for Apache Airflow), Google has Cloud Composer, and Microsoft has managed Airflow on Azure. These services handle infrastructure, updates, and scaling for you.

Pipedream offers flexible pricing plans designed to grow with your needs. The Free plan provides generous limits with 100 monthly credits, 2M operations, and 3 connected accounts - perfect for personal projects and testing.

Paid plans offer enhanced capabilities:

• Basic ($29/month) - 2,000 credits, 20M operations, 10 connected accounts for growing individuals

• Advanced ($49/month) - 2,000 credits, 50M operations, 3 connected accounts for production teams

• Connect ($99/month) - 10,000 credits, 50M operations, 5 connected accounts for developers building integrations

• Enterprise (Custom pricing) - Unlimited everything with dedicated support and custom features

Key advantages:

Credits are charged per 30 seconds of compute time, not per step, making it cost-effective for complex workflows. All plans include unlimited workflow development and testing, with charges only applying to production executions. Annual billing provides additional savings on all paid plans.