Automation & Integration · head to head
CrewAI vs Trigger.dev
C
CrewAI
Automation & Integration
The Enterprise Agent Build and Runtime for the work your business runs on
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
T
Trigger.dev
Automation & Integration
Build and deploy fully managed AI agents and workflows
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only CrewAI has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: CrewAI the free Basic tier caps at 50 workflow executions per month, with all higher usage requiring a custom Enterprise contract, as of August 2026.; Trigger.dev compute is billed per second by machine size, from $0.0000169 per second on the smallest Micro instance up to $0.00068 per second on Large 2x, plus $0.000025 per run invocation, as of August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which CrewAI and Trigger.dev actually diverge.
| Attribute | CrewAI | Trigger.dev |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | On request |
| Pricing model | freemium | usage-based |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
Identical on both: platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Automation & Integration).
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
CrewAI
- The free Basic tier caps at 50 workflow executions per month, with all higher usage requiring a custom Enterprise contract, as of August 2026.
Trigger.dev
- Compute is billed per second by machine size, from $0.0000169 per second on the smallest Micro instance up to $0.00068 per second on Large 2x, plus $0.000025 per run invocation, as of August 2026.
Pricing, plan by plan
CrewAI
FreeNo published plan breakdown. See the CrewAI review.
Trigger.dev
On requestNo published plan breakdown. See the Trigger.dev review.
Which should you pick?
Choose Trigger.dev if
Nothing in the data separates Trigger.dev from CrewAI on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.
Questions people ask
- Is CrewAI or Trigger.dev better?
- Neither clearly leads. CrewAI starts at Free and Trigger.dev at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, CrewAI or Trigger.dev?
- CrewAI has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for CrewAI and On request for Trigger.dev.
- Does CrewAI or Trigger.dev run on more platforms?
- Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- Can I use CrewAI for free?
- Yes. CrewAI has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Trigger.dev starts at On request.