Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Apache Airflow VS Workato

Compare Apache Airflow VS Workato and see what are their differences

Apache Airflow logo Apache Airflow

Airflow is a platform to programmaticaly author, schedule and monitor data pipelines.

Workato logo Workato

Experts agree - we're the leader. Forrester Research names Workato a Leader in iPaaS for Dynamic Integration. Get the report. Gartner recognizes Workato as a “Cool Vendor in Social Software and Collaboration”.
  • Apache Airflow Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-06-17
  • Workato Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-16

Workato

$ Details
-
Release Date
2013 January
Startup details
Country
United States
State
California
Founder(s)
Alexey Timanovskiy
Employees
250 - 499

Apache Airflow features and specs

  • Scalability
    Apache Airflow can scale horizontally, allowing it to handle large volumes of tasks and workflows by distributing the workload across multiple worker nodes.
  • Extensibility
    It supports custom plugins and operators, making it highly customizable to fit various use cases. Users can define their own tasks, sensors, and hooks.
  • Visualization
    Airflow provides an intuitive web interface for monitoring and managing workflows. The interface allows users to visualize DAGs, track task statuses, and debug failures.
  • Flexibility
    Workflows are defined using Python code, which offers a high degree of flexibility and programmatic control over the tasks and their dependencies.
  • Integrations
    Airflow has built-in integrations with a wide range of tools and services such as AWS, Google Cloud, and Apache Hadoop, making it easier to connect to external systems.

Possible disadvantages of Apache Airflow

  • Complexity
    Setting up and configuring Apache Airflow can be complex, particularly for new users. It requires careful management of infrastructure components like databases and web servers.
  • Resource Intensive
    Airflow can be resource-heavy in terms of both memory and CPU usage, especially when dealing with a large number of tasks and DAGs.
  • Learning Curve
    The learning curve can be steep for users who are not familiar with Python or the underlying concepts of workflow management.
  • Limited Real-Time Processing
    Airflow is better suited for batch processing and scheduled tasks rather than real-time event-based processing.
  • Dependency Management
    Managing task dependencies in complex DAGs can become cumbersome and may lead to configuration errors if not properly handled.

Workato features and specs

  • Ease of Use
    Workato offers a user-friendly interface with low-code/no-code capabilities, making it accessible for non-technical users to build and manage automated workflows.
  • Extensive Integrations
    The platform supports a wide range of integrations with major applications and services, allowing businesses to connect disparate systems and streamline processes.
  • Scalability
    Workato can handle large-scale automation projects, making it suitable for both small businesses and large enterprises.
  • Advanced Features
    The platform includes advanced functionalities like AI, machine learning, and natural language processing, which can enhance complex workflows.
  • Security
    Workato ensures robust security features, including data encryption and compliance with various industry standards, which is crucial for protecting sensitive information.

Possible disadvantages of Workato

  • Cost
    Workato can be relatively expensive compared to other automation tools, which might deter small businesses or individuals with limited budgets.
  • Learning Curve for Advanced Features
    While the basic features are easy to use, mastering the more advanced functionalities may require significant time and effort.
  • Complex Pricing Structure
    The pricing model can be complex and may not be straightforward for new users to understand, potentially leading to unexpected costs.
  • Performance Issues
    Some users have reported occasional performance issues, such as slow execution times for tasks, especially when dealing with large volumes of data.
  • Limited Custom Scripting
    Although it supports a wide range of integrations, there's limited flexibility for custom scripting compared to other more developer-focused platforms.

Apache Airflow videos

Airflow Tutorial for Beginners - Full Course in 2 Hours 2022

Workato videos

Webinar Series by Workato | Introduction to Workato (Main)

More videos:

  • Review - Workato Product Updates - February 2020
  • Review - Vijay Tella, Workato CEO: Welcome to the New Era of Automation

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Apache Airflow and Workato)
Workflow Automation
100 100%
0% 0
Web Service Automation
51 51%
49% 49
Automation
83 83%
17% 17
Data Integration
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Apache Airflow and Workato

Apache Airflow Reviews

5 Airflow Alternatives for Data Orchestration
While Apache Airflow continues to be a popular tool for data orchestration, the alternatives presented here offer a range of features and benefits that may better suit certain projects or team preferences. Whether you prioritize simplicity, code-centric design, or the integration of machine learning workflows, there is likely an alternative that meets your needs. By...
Top 8 Apache Airflow Alternatives in 2024
Apache Airflow is a workflow streamlining solution aiming at accelerating routine procedures. This article provides a detailed description of Apache Airflow as one of the most popular automation solutions. It also presents and compares alternatives to Airflow, their characteristic features, and recommended application areas. Based on that, each business could decide which...
Source: blog.skyvia.com
10 Best Airflow Alternatives for 2024
In a nutshell, you gained a basic understanding of Apache Airflow and its powerful features. On the other hand, you understood some of the limitations and disadvantages of Apache Airflow. Hence, this article helped you explore the best Apache Airflow Alternatives available in the market. So, you can try hands-on on these Airflow Alternatives and select the best according to...
Source: hevodata.com
A List of The 16 Best ETL Tools And Why To Choose Them
Apache Airflow is an open-source platform to programmatically author, schedule, and monitor workflows. The platform features a web-based user interface and a command-line interface for managing and triggering workflows.
15 Best ETL Tools in 2022 (A Complete Updated List)
Apache Airflow programmatically creates, schedules and monitors workflows. It can also modify the scheduler to run the jobs as and when required.

Workato Reviews

Top 15 MuleSoft Competitors and Alternatives
Workato is a leader in enterprise automation that provides a no-code platform for automating business workflows. In Aug 2022, Workato was named to the Forbes Cloud 100 list. The company serves over 17,000 brands, including Broadcom, Intuit, and Box. [5]
Top 9 MuleSoft Alternatives & Competitors in 2024
From ticketing systems and monitoring tools to cloud services and databases, Workato seamlessly integrates with a wide range of applications. This ensures smooth information flow across your IT ecosystem. By leveraging Workato, you can focus on strategic initiatives, enhance service delivery, and achieve operational excellence.
Source: www.zluri.com
7 Best Zapier Alternatives to Meet Your Integration Needs
Zapier’s pricing, while high, is more justifiable than Workato’s. Workato doesn’t make its pricing information public to begin with. Workato compels the buyers to go through its sales and demo process to give them custom pricing.
Zapier: The $5B unbundling opportunity
Workato and Integromat are working on “Zapier for Business” with features like SOC2-compliance, role-based-authentication, and on-premises support.
15 Great Zapier Alternatives to Automate your Workflows
Trusted by renowned brands like Slack, Levi's, Zendesk, and Intuit, Workato is one of the biggest players in the automation field, and is a great option for those who can afford the hefty price tag.
Source: paperform.co

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Apache Airflow seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 71 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Apache Airflow mentions (71)

  • Data Engineering with DLT and REST
    This article demonstrates how to work with near real-time and historical data using the dlt package. Whether you need to scale data access across the enterprise or provide historical data for post-event analysis, you can use the same framework to provide customer data. In a future article, I'll demonstrate how to use dlt with a workflow orchestrator such as Apache Airflow or Dagster.``. - Source: dev.to / about 1 month ago
  • Data on Kubernetes: Part 3 - Managing Workflows with Job Schedulers and Batch-Oriented Workflow Orchestrators
    There are several tools available that can help manage these workflows. Apache Airflow is a platform designed to programmatically author, schedule, and monitor workflows. - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
  • Apache Doris Job Scheduler for Task Automation
    Job scheduling is an important part of data management as it enables regular data updates and cleanups. In a data platform, it is often undertaken by workflow orchestration tools like Apache Airflow and Apache Dolphinscheduler. However, adding another component to the data architecture also means investing extra resources for management and maintenance. That's why Apache Doris 2.1.0 introduces a built-in Job... - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
  • How I've implemented the Medallion architecture using Apache Spark and Apache Hdoop
    Instead of the custom orchestrator I used, a proper orchestration tool should replace it like Apache Airflow, Dagster, ..., etc. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • 10 Open Source Tools for Building MLOps Pipelines
    An integral part of an ML project is data acquisition and data transformation into the required format. This involves creating ETL (extract, transform, load) pipelines and running them periodically. Airflow is an open source platform that helps engineers create and manage complex data pipelines. Furthermore, the support for Python programming language makes it easy for ML teams to adopt Airflow. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
View more

Workato mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Workato yet. Tracking of Workato recommendations started around Mar 2021.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Apache Airflow and Workato, you can also consider the following products

Make.com - Tool for workflow automation (Former Integromat)

Zapier - Connect the apps you use everyday to automate your work and be more productive. 1000+ apps and easy integrations - get started in minutes.

ifttt - IFTTT puts the internet to work for you. Create simple connections between the products you use every day.

Boomi - The #1 Integration Cloud - Build Integrations anytime, anywhere with no coding required using Dell Boomi's industry leading iPaaS platform.

Microsoft Power Automate - Microsoft Power Automate is an automation platform that integrates DPA, RPA, and process mining. It lets you automate your organization at scale using low-code and AI.

MuleSoft Anypoint Platform - Anypoint Platform is a unified, highly productive, hybrid integration platform that creates an application network of apps, data and devices with API-led connectivity.