# Orca vs prefect

> Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.

| | Orca | prefect |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 91/100 ✓ | 80/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 209 in AI Agents | #5 of 32 in Workflow Automation |
| GitHub stars | 108 555 ✓ | 24 090 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +8 648 ✓ | +178 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 15 | 17 ✓ |
| Latest release | v1.4.243 · 28 Oct 2026 ✓ | 2.20.27 · 23 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Easy ✓ | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | No | Yes ✓ |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | Typescript | Python |

## Which one should you pick?

Orca scores 91/100 against 80/100 for prefect, so it is the safer default.

prefect ships more often: 17 stable releases in the past year, against 15 for Orca.

If you want the quickest setup, Orca is easier to run; prefect needs more configuration.

Orca is growing faster right now (+8 648 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [Orca](https://selfhost.directory/project/orca) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/orca.md)
- [prefect](https://selfhost.directory/project/prefect) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/prefect.md)

## Related comparisons

- [Kestra vs prefect](https://selfhost.directory/compare/kestra-vs-prefect)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/orca-vs-prefect