Windmillvs
n8n
n8n: Both are open-source automation platforms; n8n emphasizes visual no-code workflows while Windmill emphasizes code-first scripting.
Windmill
Open-source developer platform for building scripts, workflows, and internal apps
As of 29 August 2026, Windmill has a free plan and paid plans start at $120/month. Windmill is an open-source platform for turning scripts into workflows, APIs, and internal apps with a code-first, self-hostable engine. Softwr lists it under Automation Integration. Windmill is made by Windmill Labs, available on Web, API, Linux, Windows.
Overview
What Windmill does
Windmill is an open-source developer platform that turns scripts written in Python, TypeScript, Go, and other languages into workflows, scheduled jobs, APIs, and internal UI applications. It offers a free self-hosted community edition and a paid Enterprise tier with unlimited workspaces, seat-based access control, and priority support, alongside compute-unit-based pricing for scaling execution capacity.
What people use it for
- Turning ad-hoc scripts into scheduled jobs and APIs
- Building internal tools from existing Python/TypeScript code
- Self-hosted automation for engineering teams
- Orchestrating multi-language workflows
The honest half
Where it falls short
Concrete and checkable, so you can decide whether any of them matter to you. This is the half of a review a vendor will not write about Windmill.
- Free self-hosted tier caps SSO users at 10 and workspaces at 3, requiring Enterprise for larger teams.
- Compute unit and seat-based pricing (developer vs. operator seats, worker compute units) adds pricing complexity beyond a flat monthly fee.
- Email triggers are capped at 100/day on the free tier, limiting event-driven use cases without upgrading.
- Smaller ecosystem of pre-built integrations compared to more established automation tools like n8n.
Cross-shopped
What people choose instead of Windmill
Each pairing was judged by two reviewers asking whether a buyer would genuinely weigh the two against each other. The ones that failed were deleted rather than published.
- WindmillvsRetool
Retool: Retool also turns backend logic into internal apps and workflows, though it is closed-source and UI-builder focused compared to Windmill's script-first approach.
Pricing
What Windmill costs
Taken from the vendor's own pricing page. Prices move, so check before you buy.
Free / Open-source
Free
- Unlimited executions
- Self-hosted deployment
- Max 10 users with SSO
- 3 workspaces max, 50 total users
Enterprise
$120 /mo
- Unlimited executions and workspaces
- Uncapped SSO seats
- 24/7 priority support (3-hour response)
- Commercial license included
Capabilities
Features
Script-to-workflow engine
Compose scripts written in multiple languages into multi-step workflows.
Auto-generated UIs
Automatically builds forms and apps from script inputs and outputs.
Self-hosted deployment
Free, open-source self-hosting with unlimited executions.
Git sync
Sync workspace scripts and flows with a Git repository.
SSO support
Single sign-on with seat-based operator and developer roles.
Audit logs
Enterprise-tier audit logging for compliance and traceability.
Answered, with sources
Questions people ask
Each answer names the page it came from, so you can check it rather than take our word for it.
What does Windmill cost?
Windmill's Free and Open-source edition is $0/month for self-hosted use with unlimited executions, while Enterprise starts at $120/month with unlimited workspaces and uncapped SSO seats, priced further by developer/operator seats and compute units.
SourceIs there a free plan and what are its limits?
The free self-hosted plan supports unlimited executions but caps SSO at 10 users, workspaces at 3, groups/permissions at 4, and email triggers at 100 per day.
SourceHow is usage metered on Windmill Enterprise?
Enterprise usage is metered through seats (developer seats at $20/month, operator seats at $10/month) and compute units, e.g. $100/month for 2 standard-worker compute units.
SourceWhat happens to a self-hosted Windmill deployment if the company shuts down?
The pricing page addresses this directly as an FAQ topic, noting that self-hosted applications built on the open-source edition can continue running independently of Windmill the company.
SourceKeep looking
Where to go from Windmill
- Windmill alternativesEvery product people weigh against it
- Windmill pricingPlans, floors and what the tiers exclude
- Windmill badgesWhich rules it meets, and the figure behind each
- All Automation Integration softwareThe full category
- Best Automation Integration softwareThe shortlist, and how it was cut
Best Automation Integration software for
Compare Windmill with
- n8n
- Nango
- Airbyte
- Flowable
- Meltano
- RudderStack
- Grouparoo
- Activiti
- jBPM
- Merge
- Camunda
- Flowise
- Automate.io
- Autonoly
- Boomi
- Browser Use
- Browserbase
- Activiti
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Free, then $20/mo9 researched notesApache 2.0 BPMN engine under Hyland, from which Flowable and Camunda were forked
Open source12 researched notes
Softwr does not host reviews and shows no star rating for Windmill, because a rating we did not collect is not ours to publish. What is here is the pricing and platform detail from the vendor’s own pages, limitations we could state concretely, and alternatives a reviewer confirmed people weigh against it. Tell us if any of it is wrong.
More on Windmill
Windmill alternatives
What people switch to, and what they give up
Windmill pricing
Every tier, and where the cost actually lands
Compare Windmill
Put it head to head with anything we hold
Windmill badge
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