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Automation Integration · head to head

Fivetran vs Orkes

Fivetran logo

Fivetran

Automation Integration

The most trusted data movement platform

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: Fivetran billed on monthly active rows, so the bill tracks how much source data changes rather than how much is stored or queried; 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.
  • They diverge on capability: Fivetran covers Automated data pipeline, Orkes covers JSON workflow definitions.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Fivetran and Orkes actually diverge.

Attributes where Fivetran and Orkes differ
AttributeFivetranOrkes
Pricing modelusage-basedquote
PlatformsWeb, CloudLinux, Docker, Kubernetes, Cloud
Founded2012Unknown

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 Fivetran

  • Automated data pipeline
  • Change Data Capture
  • Data transformation
  • Real-time sync
  • Monitoring
  • Data quality
  • Scheduling
  • Notifications

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.

Fivetran

  • Managed data pipelines from SaaS sources into a warehousenot Orkes
  • Keeping a warehouse in sync with production databases without writing connectorsnot Orkes

Orkes

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

Where each one falls short

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

Fivetran

  • Billed on monthly active rows, so the bill tracks how much source data changes rather than how much is stored or queried
  • Each connection follows its own cost curve, so total spend is hard to predict before running a pipeline
  • The free plan allows 500,000 monthly active rows, 3,500 activation rows and 5,000 model runs
  • Transformations are metered separately, from $0.01 per model run above 5,000 down to $0.002 above 100,000
  • A schema change upstream that touches many rows raises the bill without any change on the customer's side

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

Fivetran

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Limited connectors
    • Basic support
  • Standard$300/month
    • 500+ connectors
    • Priority support
  • Enterprise$1000/month
    • Custom connectors
    • Dedicated support

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 Fivetran if

  • You need automated data pipeline.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Cloud.
  • You also want change data capture.
Fivetran 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 Fivetran or Orkes better?
Neither clearly leads. Fivetran 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, Fivetran or Orkes?
Fivetran starts at Free and Orkes at Free.
Does Fivetran or Orkes run on more platforms?
Fivetran runs on Web, Cloud. Orkes runs on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Cloud.
Can I use Fivetran for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Fivetran best used for?
Fivetran is most often used for managed data pipelines from saas sources into a warehouse, keeping a warehouse in sync with production databases without writing connectors. Of those, managed data pipelines from saas sources into a warehouse and keeping a warehouse in sync with production databases without writing connectors are not what Orkes is typically brought in for.
What can Fivetran do that Orkes cannot?
Fivetran covers Automated data pipeline, Change Data Capture, Data transformation, Real-time sync. Orkes covers JSON workflow definitions, Polyglot workers, Visual workflow builder, AI and LLM tasks.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Fivetran: What does Fivetran's free plan include?

The free plan includes 500,000 monthly active rows for connections, 3,500 monthly active rows for activations, and 5,000 monthly model runs for transformations.

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.

Fivetran: What is the trial period for Fivetran?

Fivetran offers a 14-day risk-free trial for new accounts. Each new connection also includes 14 days of free use, with trial extensions available by contacting support.

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.

Fivetran: How much do I save by paying annually instead of monthly?

Annual contracts save up to 22.6% compared to monthly pricing, with tiered discounts starting at 5% and increasing based on annual list price.

Source
Orkes: What does Enterprise cost?

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

Fivetran: Can I cancel or modify my Fivetran subscription anytime?

Plans can be upgraded at any time. Connections can be added or removed at any time, and you can block tables or schemas to reduce usage. Downgrade or cancellation policies are not specified on the pricing page.

Source
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.

Fivetran: What is the pricing for Fivetran transformations?

Transformations cost $0.01 per run for 5,001 to 30,000 monthly runs, with per-run costs declining as volume increases.

Source
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