Dagster

Open source data orchestrator built around data assets, with lineage, catalog and quality checks.

Open sourceSelf-hostableWorkflow orchestration tools

Updated Nov 7, 2026 · AppBreakup editorial · Web, Linux, macOS, Windows, Self-hosted

Visit Dagster See 6 alternatives

Is Dagster free?

Yes, free and open source

Solo plan:: $10/month plus credits
License:: Apache-2.0

Checked on Dagster's site Nov 8, 2026

Full Dagster pricing and plans

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All 6

Apache Airflow
Open source
Prefect
Starter plan: $100/month
Astronomer (Astro)
Starting price: Deployments from $0.35/hr (Developer)

Verified facts: 5 of 5
Alternatives ranked: 6
Approved reviews: 0
Visits sent from here: 0

About Dagster

Dagster is a data orchestration platform that organises pipelines around the data assets they produce (tables, files, machine learning models) rather than around tasks. You declare assets in Python and how they depend on each other, and Dagster works out what to run, tracks lineage, shows freshness, and runs data quality checks, which gives data teams something close to a catalog and an orchestrator in one. It integrates closely with dbt, Snowflake, BigQuery, Spark, Airbyte and similar tools, and its local development and testing story is a frequent reason teams move to it from Airflow. The core framework is open source under Apache 2.0 and can be self-hosted. Dagster+ is the managed service, with a Solo plan for individuals and a Starter plan for small teams, both billed monthly plus usage credits and with a 30-day trial, and custom Pro pricing for larger companies. Serverless and hybrid deployments are available, the latter keeping your code and data in your own cloud.

Best for: Data platform teams who want lineage, data quality and orchestration in one tool.

Dagster pricing (checked Nov 8, 2026)

Each line is quoted from Dagster's own site, with the page it came from.

Plan or term	What it says	Checked	Source
Solo plan	$10/month plus credits	Nov 8, 2026	dagster.io
Starter plan	$100/month plus credits	Nov 8, 2026	dagster.io
Free trial	30 days	Nov 8, 2026	dagster.io

Full Dagster pricing and cheaper alternatives

What works

Asset-based model makes lineage and freshness visible
Strong local development and testing workflow
Close dbt integration
Hybrid deployment keeps data in your own cloud

Why people leave

Asset-centric model takes time to learn if you think in tasks
Managed plans add usage-based credits on top of the monthly fee
No free hosted tier beyond the trial

Dagster vs Apache Airflow, Prefect and Astronomer (Astro)

From each app's listing and the prices verified on its own site. A dash means we haven't verified it yet.

Attribute	Dagster	Apache Airflow	Prefect	Astronomer (Astro)
Pricing	Open source	Open source	Open source	Paid
Verified price	$10/month plus credits	—	$100/month	Deployments from $0.35/hr (Developer)
Free plan	Free app	Free app	Hobby, free forever	No
Open source	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Self-hostable	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Platforms	Web, Linux, macOS, Windows, Self-hosted	Linux, Self-hosted, Web	Web, Linux, macOS, Windows, Self-hosted	Web, Self-hosted

Top Dagster alternatives

See all 6

1
Apache Airflow
The most widely deployed open-source orchestrator, with the largest pool of operators, providers and experienced engineers.
68.8
2
Prefect
Plain Python flows without an asset model, lighter to adopt when you just want to schedule and retry scripts.
64.8
3
Astronomer (Astro)
Managed Airflow with deployment tooling and observability, if you want to move to Airflow without running it yourself.
61.8
4
Flyte
Kubernetes-native, strongly typed workflows with caching and versioning, popular for ML pipelines at scale.
59.4
5
Argo Workflows
Container-native workflows defined as Kubernetes resources, a good fit for teams that already run everything on Kubernetes.
57.5

Why people left Dagster

In reviewers' own words, from reviews of the apps they moved to. These are their opinions, not ours.

No switching stories yet. If you moved away from Dagster, review the app you switched to and tell us why.

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Dagster: common questions

What is Dagster?

Dagster: Open source data orchestrator built around data assets, with lineage, catalog and quality checks. Best for data platform teams who want lineage, data quality and orchestration in one tool. Available for Web, Linux, macOS and Windows, and you can host it yourself.

Is Dagster free?

Yes. Dagster is free, open-source software that you can host yourself.

How much does Dagster cost?

Dagster is free and open source. Solo plan: $10/month plus credits; Starter plan: $100/month plus credits; Free trial: 30 days. Checked on Dagster's own site, November 2026.

Does Dagster have a free trial or refund?

Free trial: 30 days. Source: Dagster's own site.

Is Dagster open source?

Yes. The source code is on GitHub at dagster-io/dagster. You can also run it on your own server.

What platforms does Dagster run on?

Dagster is available for Web, Linux, macOS, Windows and Self-hosted.

What are the best alternatives to Dagster?

The highest-ranked Dagster alternatives right now are Apache Airflow, Prefect and Astronomer (Astro). See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.

Dagster vs Apache Airflow: what's the difference?

Both Dagster and Apache Airflow are free and open source. Only Dagster runs on macOS and Windows.

See all 6 Dagster alternatives

Dagster facts

5 of 5 verified

License: Apache-2.0; Checked Nov 8, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab); “License: Apache-2.0 (Apache License 2.0).”
Solo plan: $10/month plus credits; Checked Nov 8, 2026dagster.io(opens source in a new tab); “Solo is $10/month plus $0.040 per credit, and Starter is $100/month plus $0.035 per credit.”
Starter plan: $100/month plus credits; Checked Nov 8, 2026dagster.io(opens source in a new tab); “Solo is $10/month plus $0.040 per credit, and Starter is $100/month plus $0.035 per credit.”
Free trial: 30 days; Checked Nov 8, 2026dagster.io(opens source in a new tab); “30-day free trial”
Self-hosting: Yes; Checked Nov 8, 2026dagster.io(opens source in a new tab); “Dagster's core orchestration framework is open source and available on GitHub. You can self-host”