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Automation Integration · head to head

Browserbase vs Orkes

Browserbase logo

Browserbase

Automation Integration

Browserbase makes the web as reliable and programmable as APIs

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Orkes logo

Orkes

Automation Integration

Commercial Conductor, now the maintainer of the workflow engine Netflix archived

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Browserbase free plan limited to 3 concurrent browsers and 1 browser hour/month; Orkes netflix archived the Conductor repository in December 2023 and Orkes took over maintenance, so the large-company backing that justified many original adoptions no longer exists.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Browserbase and Orkes actually diverge.

Attributes where Browserbase and Orkes differ
AttributeBrowserbaseOrkes
Pricing modelusage-basedquote
PlatformsWebLinux, Docker, Kubernetes, Cloud

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 Browserbase

Nothing recorded that Orkes does not also cover.

Only in Orkes

  • JSON workflow definitions
  • Polyglot workers
  • Visual workflow builder
  • AI and LLM tasks
  • Human tasks
  • Event handlers
  • RBAC and secrets
  • Hosted or self-hosted

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Browserbase

  • Web scraping and automationnot Orkes
  • Browser-based data extractionnot Orkes
  • AI agent infrastructurenot Orkes

Orkes

  • A microservices estate that needs orchestration across services written in different languages without a shared SDKnot Browserbase
  • A team already running Conductor OSS that wants a supported distribution now that Netflix has stopped maintaining itnot Browserbase
  • An AI platform composing agent steps, model calls and vector lookups as versioned workflow definitionsnot Browserbase
  • A business process needing human approval steps interleaved with automated service callsnot Browserbase

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Browserbase

  • Free plan limited to 3 concurrent browsers and 1 browser hour/month
  • Usage-based overages apply to browser hours and API calls beyond included amounts

Orkes

  • Netflix archived the Conductor repository in December 2023 and Orkes took over maintenance, so the large-company backing that justified many original adoptions no longer exists.
  • Enterprise pricing is entirely unpublished, and the only free option is explicitly a prototyping sandbox whose limits can change at any time, so there is no supported low-cost entry point.
  • Self-hosting Conductor OSS in production means operating the engine plus its persistence and indexing dependencies, typically Postgres or Cassandra with Elasticsearch, which is a substantial platform commitment.
  • JSON workflow definitions are language agnostic but verbose and awkward to test, and teams accustomed to defining workflows in code find them a step backwards in developer experience.
  • Orkes is a small company whose commercial future is tied to a single open source project it also maintains, which concentrates both vendor and project risk in the same place.

Pricing, plan by plan

Browserbase

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 3 concurrent browsers, 1 browser hour/month
    • 1,000 search and fetch calls each
    • 15-minute session limit, 7-day data retention
  • Developer$20/month
    • 25 concurrent browsers, 100 browser hours
    • $0.12/hour overage on browser time
    • 1,000 fetch calls with usage-based overages
  • Startup$99/month
    • 100 concurrent browsers, 500 browser hours
    • $0.10/hour overage on browser time
    • 10,000 fetch calls with usage-based overages
  • Scale$null/mo
    • 250+ concurrent browsers, 500+ browser hours
    • 10,000+ search/fetch calls with usage-based pricing
    • Custom retention, HIPAA (BAA), DPA, SSO

Orkes

Free
  • Developer EditionFree
    • All Conductor OSS features plus enterprise capabilities
    • Sandbox for prototyping only
    • Rate limits and resources may change without notice
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Availability SLA up to 99.99%
    • Orkes-hosted or customer-hosted deployment
    • Dedicated technical account manager

Which should you pick?

Choose Browserbase if

  • You want to start without paying.
Browserbase review

Choose Orkes if

  • You need json workflow definitions.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Cloud.
  • You also want polyglot workers.
Orkes review

Questions people ask

Is Browserbase or Orkes better?
Neither clearly leads. Browserbase starts at Free and Orkes at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Browserbase or Orkes?
Browserbase starts at Free and Orkes at Free.
Does Browserbase or Orkes run on more platforms?
Browserbase runs on Web. Orkes runs on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Cloud.
Can I use Browserbase for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Browserbase best used for?
Browserbase is most often used for web scraping and automation, browser-based data extraction, ai agent infrastructure. Of those, web scraping and automation and browser-based data extraction are not what Orkes is typically brought in for.
What can Browserbase do that Orkes cannot?
Orkes covers JSON workflow definitions, Polyglot workers, Visual workflow builder, AI and LLM tasks.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Browserbase: How much does Browserbase cost?

Free plan available; Developer plan is $20/month; Startup (most popular) is $99/month; Scale tier has custom pricing.

Source
Orkes: Does Netflix still maintain Conductor?

No. Netflix archived its repository in December 2023. The open source project continues at conductor-oss under Apache 2.0, maintained by Orkes.

Browserbase: What browser concurrency limits does Browserbase have?

Free plan allows 3 concurrent browsers. Developer plan allows 25 concurrent browsers. Startup allows 100 concurrent browsers. Scale tier offers 250+ concurrent browsers.

Source
Orkes: Is there a free production tier?

No. The Developer Edition is a sandbox that the vendor states is unsuitable for production. Self-hosting Conductor OSS is the free production route.

Browserbase: What are Browserbase's browser hour limits and overage costs?

Free plan includes 1 browser hour/month. Developer includes 100 hours at $0.12/hour overage. Startup includes 500 hours at $0.10/hour overage. Scale tier includes 500+ hours with custom usage-based pricing.

Source
Orkes: What does Enterprise cost?

Nothing is published; it is quoted by deployment and support requirements.

Orkes: How does it compare with Temporal?

Conductor uses declarative JSON workflow definitions and external workers; Temporal defines workflows in code. Temporal has the larger community.

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