Automation Integration · head to head
jBPM vs Orkes
jBPM
Automation Integration
Long-running Java BPMN engine, now developed inside Apache KIE with commercial support from IBM
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Orkes
Automation Integration
Commercial Conductor, now the maintainer of the workflow engine Netflix archived
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: jBPM the project moved to the Apache Software Foundation as Apache KIE and is still in incubation, which is a weaker governance signal than a vendor-owned product and a harder case to make to an architecture board.; 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: jBPM covers BPMN 2.0 execution, Orkes covers JSON workflow definitions.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which jBPM and Orkes 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 jBPM
- BPMN 2.0 execution
- Drools integration
- Human task service
- Kogito compilation
- Process designer
- Timers and signals
- REST and Java APIs
- Case management
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.
jBPM
- A Java organisation already running jBPM 7 that needs to decide between the Apache KIE line, Kogito or migration awaynot Orkes
- A team that wants BPMN processes and Drools business rules executing in one runtime without integrating two productsnot Orkes
- A government or banking system with long-running processes needing durable timers and full audit history at no licence costnot Orkes
- A Quarkus estate adopting Kogito to run compiled processes with container-appropriate startup timesnot Orkes
Orkes
- A microservices estate that needs orchestration across services written in different languages without a shared SDKnot jBPM
- A team already running Conductor OSS that wants a supported distribution now that Netflix has stopped maintaining itnot jBPM
- An AI platform composing agent steps, model calls and vector lookups as versioned workflow definitionsnot jBPM
- A business process needing human approval steps interleaved with automated service callsnot jBPM
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
jBPM
- The project moved to the Apache Software Foundation as Apache KIE and is still in incubation, which is a weaker governance signal than a vendor-owned product and a harder case to make to an architecture board.
- The classic jBPM 7.x line has not had a Red Hat-sponsored release since 2023, so staying on it means running effectively frozen software while the development happens under a different name.
- Kogito is architecturally different from the classic runtime, using ahead-of-time compilation, so moving forward is a migration project rather than a version upgrade.
- Commercial support has shifted to IBM Business Automation Manager Open Editions, which means renegotiating with a different vendor under different terms than Red Hat customers signed.
- The tooling and workbench have long been the weakest part, and organisations routinely build their own process administration interfaces because the shipped ones are dated.
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
jBPM
Free- jBPMFree
- Apache 2.0 licence with no usage restrictions
- Full BPMN engine, human tasks and Drools integration
- Community support via Apache KIE mailing lists
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 jBPM if
- You need bpmn 2.0 execution.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Linux, Windows, Docker, Kubernetes.
- You also want drools integration.
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.
Questions people ask
- Is jBPM or Orkes better?
- Neither clearly leads. jBPM 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, jBPM or Orkes?
- jBPM starts at Free and Orkes at Free.
- Does jBPM or Orkes run on more platforms?
- jBPM runs on Linux, Windows, Docker, Kubernetes. Orkes runs on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Cloud.
- Can I use jBPM for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is jBPM best used for?
- jBPM is most often used for a java organisation already running jbpm 7 that needs to decide between the apache kie line, kogito or migration away, a team that wants bpmn processes and drools business rules executing in one runtime without integrating two products, a government or banking system with long-running processes needing durable timers and full audit history at no licence cost, a quarkus estate adopting kogito to run compiled processes with container-appropriate startup times. Of those, a java organisation already running jbpm 7 that needs to decide between the apache kie line, kogito or migration away and a team that wants bpmn processes and drools business rules executing in one runtime without integrating two products are not what Orkes is typically brought in for.
- What can jBPM do that Orkes cannot?
- jBPM covers BPMN 2.0 execution, Drools integration, Human task service, Kogito compilation. Orkes covers JSON workflow definitions, Polyglot workers, Visual workflow builder, AI and LLM tasks.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
jBPM: Is jBPM dead?
No. Development continues as part of Apache KIE, with releases through 2025, but the Red Hat-sponsored 7.x line has been static since 2023.
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.
jBPM: Who provides commercial support?
IBM, through Business Automation Manager Open Editions, following the transition away from Red Hat Process Automation Manager as a growth product.
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.
jBPM: What is Kogito?
The cloud-native successor that compiles processes ahead of time for Quarkus and Spring Boot, architecturally different from the classic jBPM runtime.
Orkes: What does Enterprise cost?
Nothing is published; it is quoted by deployment and support requirements.
jBPM: Does it cost anything?
No. It is Apache 2.0 licensed with no fee. Costs are support contracts and the engineering effort to run it.
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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