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Trigger.dev

Open-source platform for running long background jobs, workflows and AI agents written in TypeScript.

Open sourceWorkflow orchestration tools

Updated · AppBreakup editorial · Web, Self-hosted

Visit Trigger.devSee 5 alternatives

Is Trigger.dev free?

Yes, free and open source

Starting price:
$10/month (Hobby)
Free plan:
$5/month of credits

Checked on Trigger.dev's site Nov 8, 2026

Full Trigger.dev pricing and plans

Switch from Trigger.dev to

All 5
  • Inngest logo
    Inngest

    Starting price: $99/month (Pro)

  • Temporal logo
    Temporal

    Starting price: $50 per million actions

  • Prefect logo
    Prefect

    Starter plan: $100/month

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

About Trigger.dev

Trigger.dev lets you write background tasks as ordinary TypeScript functions in your own codebase, then run them on managed workers with retries, queues, concurrency limits, cron schedules and no execution timeouts. Waits and child tasks are checkpointed, so a paused run doesn't burn compute while it sits idle. It's aimed at web developers, especially Next.js and Node.js teams, who need jobs like video processing, email sequences or long AI agent runs without managing queues and servers. A Realtime feature streams run progress to your frontend. The cloud service bills for compute seconds plus a small fee per run, with a free tier that includes monthly credits and paid plans that raise concurrency, retention and team limits. The project is Apache 2.0 licensed and can be self-hosted. Python is supported only through a build extension called from TypeScript tasks.

Best for: TypeScript and Next.js teams that want durable background jobs without running their own queue.

Trigger.dev pricing (checked Nov 8, 2026)

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

Plan or termWhat it saysCheckedSource
Free plan$5/month of creditsNov 8, 2026trigger.dev
Starting price$10/month (Hobby)Nov 8, 2026trigger.dev
Full Trigger.dev pricing and cheaper alternatives

Pros and cons

What works

  • Tasks live in your repo as normal async TypeScript code
  • No run timeouts, and waiting runs are checkpointed so they don't use compute
  • Apache 2.0 licensed and self-hostable
  • Realtime progress updates to the frontend are built in

Why people leave

  • TypeScript-first; Python only runs via an extension inside TypeScript tasks
  • Usage-based compute billing makes costs harder to predict than a flat fee
  • Free plan has 1-day log retention

Trigger.dev vs Inngest, Temporal and Prefect

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

AttributeTrigger.devInngestTemporalPrefect
PricingOpen sourceOpen sourceOpen sourceOpen source
Verified price$10/month (Hobby)$99/month (Pro)$50 per million actions$100/month
Free plan$5/month of credits50,000 executions/monthFree appHobby, free forever
Open sourceNoNoNoYes
Self-hostableNoNoNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Self-hostedWeb, Self-hostedWeb, Self-hostedWeb, Linux, macOS, Windows, Self-hosted

Top Trigger.dev alternatives

See all 5
  1. 1Inngest logo
    Inngest

    Similar durable step functions for TypeScript and Python, triggered by events and run on your own endpoints.

    68.8
  2. 2Temporal logo
    Temporal

    Mature durable execution engine with SDKs in many languages, for teams that outgrow TypeScript-only tooling.

    64.8
  3. 3Prefect logo
    Prefect

    Python-first orchestration with a hosted control plane, better suited to data pipelines than app jobs.

    61.8
  4. 4Apache Airflow logo
    Apache Airflow

    The standard open-source scheduler for batch data pipelines if your jobs are mostly ETL.

    59.4
  5. 5Windmill logo
    Windmill

    Open-source and self-hostable runner for TypeScript and Python scripts, scheduled jobs and multi-step workflows with a built-in UI.

    50.0

Why people left Trigger.dev

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

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Trigger.dev: common questions

What is Trigger.dev?

Trigger.dev: Open-source platform for running long background jobs, workflows and AI agents written in TypeScript. Best for typeScript and Next.js teams that want durable background jobs without running their own queue. Available for Web, and you can host it yourself.

Is Trigger.dev free?

Yes. Trigger.dev is free, open-source software.

How much does Trigger.dev cost?

Trigger.dev is free and open source. Free plan: $5/month of credits; Starting price: $10/month (Hobby). Checked on Trigger.dev's own site, November 2026.

Is Trigger.dev open source?

No, Trigger.dev is not open source. Open-source alternatives include Prefect, Apache Airflow and Windmill.

What platforms does Trigger.dev run on?

Trigger.dev is available for Web and Self-hosted.

What are the best alternatives to Trigger.dev?

The highest-ranked Trigger.dev alternatives right now are Inngest, Temporal and Prefect. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.

Trigger.dev vs Inngest: what's the difference?

Both Trigger.dev and Inngest are free and open source. Verified prices: Trigger.dev $10/month (Hobby), Inngest $99/month (Pro). Both run on Web.

See all 5 Trigger.dev alternatives