Automation Integration · head to head
Activiti vs Nintex
Activiti
Automation Integration
Apache 2.0 BPMN engine under Hyland, from which Flowable and Camunda were forked
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Activiti the last stable release was 8.2.0 in January 2024, and while release candidate builds continue, a two-year gap between stable versions is a real risk signal for a production dependency.; Nintex no published pricing on website; requires direct sales contact
- They diverge on capability: Activiti covers BPMN 2.0 engine, Nintex covers Workflow builder.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Activiti and Nintex actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Automation Integration).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Activiti
- BPMN 2.0 engine
- Activiti Cloud
- Modeler
- Java and REST APIs
- Pluggable persistence
- Identity integration
Only in Nintex
- Workflow builder
- Process mining
- Task automation
- Case management
- Mobile access
- Analytics
- Monitoring
- 300+ apps
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Activiti
- An Alfresco or Hyland content services deployment where Activiti is already the embedded workflow enginenot Nintex
- A Java application that needs to embed a BPMN engine as a library under a permissive licencenot Nintex
- An organisation that has ruled out Camunda 8 on licence grounds and needs an Apache 2.0 alternativenot Nintex
- Document-centric approval workflows where the process engine sits inside the content management stack rather than beside itnot Nintex
Nintex
- Business process automation and workflow managementnot Activiti
- Document generation and digital signature collectionnot Activiti
- Salesforce and enterprise integrationnot Activiti
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Activiti
- The last stable release was 8.2.0 in January 2024, and while release candidate builds continue, a two-year gap between stable versions is a real risk signal for a production dependency.
- Both Camunda and Flowable forked away and took large parts of the contributor base with them, so the community, tutorials and third-party tooling around Activiti are much thinner than around either fork.
- Commercial support is only realistically available by buying Hyland Alfresco subscriptions, so there is no way to pay for Activiti support on its own.
- Activiti Cloud imposes a distributed architecture of several Spring Boot services plus Keycloak, which is heavy for teams who simply wanted an embeddable engine.
- Documentation is dated and partly split between old Alfresco sites and Hyland Connect, and the transition between Activiti 6, 7 and 8 architectures makes much of the older material actively misleading.
Nintex
- No published pricing on website; requires direct sales contact
- Free trials available but no trial duration specified
- Multiple product lines (Cloud, K2, Salesforce) complicate pricing assessment
Pricing, plan by plan
Activiti
Free- ActivitiFree
- Apache 2.0 licence
- Embeddable Java library or Activiti Cloud services
- No usage limits
Nintex
Free- StarterFree
- Limited workflows
- Community support
- Professional$500/month
- Advanced workflows
- Email support
- Enterprise$2000/month
- Unlimited workflows
- Dedicated support
Which should you pick?
Choose Activiti if
- You need bpmn 2.0 engine.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Linux, Windows, Docker, Kubernetes.
- You also want activiti cloud.
Choose Nintex if
- You need workflow builder.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Mobile.
- You also want process mining.
Questions people ask
- Is Activiti or Nintex better?
- Neither clearly leads. Activiti starts at Free and Nintex at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Activiti or Nintex?
- Activiti starts at Free and Nintex at Free.
- Does Activiti or Nintex run on more platforms?
- Activiti runs on Linux, Windows, Docker, Kubernetes. Nintex runs on Web, Mobile.
- Can I use Activiti for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Activiti best used for?
- Activiti is most often used for an alfresco or hyland content services deployment where activiti is already the embedded workflow engine, a java application that needs to embed a bpmn engine as a library under a permissive licence, an organisation that has ruled out camunda 8 on licence grounds and needs an apache 2.0 alternative, document-centric approval workflows where the process engine sits inside the content management stack rather than beside it. Of those, an alfresco or hyland content services deployment where activiti is already the embedded workflow engine and a java application that needs to embed a bpmn engine as a library under a permissive licence are not what Nintex is typically brought in for.
- What can Activiti do that Nintex cannot?
- Activiti covers BPMN 2.0 engine, Activiti Cloud, Modeler, Java and REST APIs. Nintex covers Workflow builder, Process mining, Task automation, Case management.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Activiti: Is Activiti still maintained?
Yes, Hyland continues to publish builds, but the last stable release was 8.2.0 in January 2024.
Nintex: Is Nintex free?
Nintex offers 30-day free trials for Workflow and Apps, plus free trials for Process Manager, eSign, and DocGen. No permanent free tier is advertised on their website.
SourceActiviti: What is its relationship to Camunda and Flowable?
Both are forks of Activiti: Camunda in 2013 and Flowable in 2016, when core developers left Alfresco.
Nintex: What is Nintex pricing?
Nintex does not publish pricing on their public website. Pricing varies by product (Cloud Automation, K2, Salesforce) and deployment model. Contact their sales team via nintex.com or request a demo to obtain pricing quotes.
SourceActiviti: What licence is it?
Apache 2.0, which distinguishes it from Camunda 8’s source-available licence.
Nintex: How long are Nintex free trials?
Nintex offers 30-day free trials for Workflow and Apps products. Process Manager, eSign, and DocGen trials are available, though exact durations are not specified on the trial page.
SourceActiviti: Should I choose Activiti for a new project?
Only if the Apache licence or an existing Alfresco deployment is decisive. Flowable and Camunda have far larger ecosystems.
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