The Orkes Conductor Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about Orkes Conductor in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.
Orkes Conductor
The Insider’s Guide
Workflow orchestration for AI agents and services, built on Conductor
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among AI agents, read from Orkes Conductor’s own pages.
Made by Orkes · checked Nov 13, 2026 · toolgpa.com
Contents
- 01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
- 02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
- 03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
- 04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
- 05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
- 06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
- 07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
ToolGPA put this guide together from Orkes Conductor’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on Orkes Conductor’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Nov 13, 2026.
Part 01 · Overview
Welcome
What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
2.2
GPA, above 81 of the 178 other AI agents we grade
Orkes Conductor is a managed workflow orchestration platform from the founding team of the open-source Conductor project, which began at Netflix. It runs AI agents, services and human approval steps in one durable execution, with the state saved at every step. Workflows can be built in a visual editor, with SDKs, or through coding agents.
To get you started, here are 8 things to know about Orkes Conductor, taken from its own pages and our grades.
The free Developer Edition is for one person and not for production.
- 1
Best for workflow engine for agents and services
Orkes Conductor runs agents and workflows together, with a visual editor, SDKs and LLM tasks.
- 2
There is a free plan
Developer Edition: free managed sandbox with the open-source features and most Enterprise features, for individual developers and not for production use.
- 3
It runs on Web
Web.
- 4
Agents and workflows together
Orchestrates agent decisions, service calls and human approvals in one execution that keeps its state at every step.
- 5
Visual editor and SDKs
Workflows can be built visually or defined in code, with open-source SDKs for Java, TypeScript, Python, Go, C# and more.
- 6
LLM tasks and prompt studio
The platform capability list includes LLM tasks and an AI Prompt Studio alongside human tasks, event handlers, webhooks and a scheduler.
- 7
A 2.2 GPA, above 81 of 178
That is against the other AI agents we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
- 8
Keep it
To replace Orkes Conductor you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
Orkes Conductor at a glance
- Pricing
- Free plan
- Free plan
- Yes
- Free trial
- None stated
- Runs on
- Web
- Made by
- Orkes
- Category
- AI Agents
- Our grade
- 2.2 GPA, fair
The report card
Best for workflow engine for agents and services
Orkes Conductor runs agents and workflows together, with a visual editor, SDKs and LLM tasks. The free Developer Edition is for one person and not for production. Anything beyond that, including multiple users and access control, means a quote for Enterprise.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C | No price is published, only a free sandbox and a quoted Enterprise plan. Nothing to compare against the category's $24 middle. |
| Free plan and trial | C | A free managed Developer Edition with most Enterprise features, but only for individual developers, not for teams or production, with community-only support. |
| Features | C | Workflows, agents, a visual editor, SDKs, prompt studio and security controls. Multiple user accounts and detailed access control need Enterprise. |
| Ease of use | C | No store rating on record. You model workflows in an editor or code with SDKs, which takes a learning curve. |
| Platforms and integrations | B | Web console, SDKs and an API, with Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Gemini and GitHub listed. No desktop or phone app. |
An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.
Who Orkes Conductor is for
- Fits if you are a developer who wants to try a workflow engine in a free sandbox
- Works for engineering teams ready to buy Enterprise for agent and service orchestration
Who it is not for
- Not for you if you want a price, as Enterprise is quoted through a demo
- Skip it if you need production use on the free plan, since it is not recommended for that
- Tight if you are a team: multiple users and detailed access control need Enterprise
- Watch out: free support is community-only
- Too light for no-code users, as the work is workflows and SDK code
Good to know
Good for
- Engineering teams that need agent runs to be durable and auditable
- Teams already using open-source Conductor that want a managed version
- Developers prototyping workflows on a free sandbox
Worth knowing
- No prices are published: the Developer Edition is free and Enterprise is quoted through a demo.
- The free Developer Edition is for individual developers and is not recommended for production or for teams.
- Multiple user accounts and detailed access control need the Enterprise plan.
- Support on the free edition is community-only.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
2
plans to choose from
Orkes Conductor has a free plan.
No price is published, only a free sandbox and a quoted Enterprise plan.
Developer Edition
$0
Free managed sandbox for prototyping, with community support. Meant for one developer, not production.
Enterprise
Custom
Hosted by Orkes or in your own cloud account, SSO, audit logs, support with SLA-backed response times, up to a 99.99% availability SLA.
The free plan
Developer Edition: free managed sandbox with the open-source features and most Enterprise features, for individual developers and not for production use.
Read from orkes.io on Nov 13, 2026.
Part 03 · Features
What it does
Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
1
Place it runs: Web
Workflow orchestration for AI agents and services, built on Conductor. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: open source, public API, workflow automation, AI agents, no-code.
Workflows, agents, a visual editor, SDKs, prompt studio and security controls.
- Agents and workflows together
- Orchestrates agent decisions, service calls and human approvals in one execution that keeps its state at every step.
- Visual editor and SDKs
- Workflows can be built visually or defined in code, with open-source SDKs for Java, TypeScript, Python, Go, C# and more.
- LLM tasks and prompt studio
- The platform capability list includes LLM tasks and an AI Prompt Studio alongside human tasks, event handlers, webhooks and a scheduler.
- Hosting choices
- Fully hosted by Orkes, or hosted in the customer's cloud account or on-premises, with dedicated clusters and VPC options on Enterprise.
- Security controls
- Lists SOC 2 Type II, role-based access, single sign-on, audit logs, secrets and end-to-end data encryption.
Where it runs
- Web
What it works with
- Claude Code
- Codex
- Cursor
- Gemini
- GitHub
Orkes Conductor is made by Orkes.
Part 04 · Standing
Where it stands
Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
81/178
Other AI agents it is graded above
Orkes Conductor's GPA of 2.2 is higher than 81 of the 178 other AI agents we grade, and level with 41.
It stands best on platforms and integrations (B, above 47 of 178) and worst on features (C, above 2).
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 179 AI agents we grade, cut by the letter each got. Orkes Conductor’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 28 of 178
- CFree plan and trialAbove 64 of 178
- CFeaturesAbove 2 of 178
- CEase of useAbove 36 of 178
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 47 of 178
Keep it, or make your own?
Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.
Keep it
To replace Orkes Conductor you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
Orkes Conductor is open source, so there is a third way: take its code and run it yourself.
What you could not
- Connections to other products, each kept working as those products change.
- An AI agent, with the models and the safeguards behind it.
- A builder that other people can use without writing code.
- What a company asks for before it lets staff use something: single sign-on, SOC 2, audit logs and roles and permissions.
What this rests on. Orkes Conductor’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
Part 05 · Alternatives
The alternatives
The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
LangGraph, Tray.ai, CrewAI, LlamaIndex and Kognitos
The 5 tools Orkes Conductor is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 2.6GPA
LangGraph
Free plan · from $39/mo
Open-source framework for building controllable AI agents.
- LangGraph is self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Orkes Conductor also covers no-code.
- 2.2GPA
Tray.ai
Free trial · from $50/mo
Integration, automation and agent platform for enterprises.
- Orkes Conductor has a free plan. Tray.ai does not, though it has a free trial.
- Orkes Conductor is open source, according to its own site.
- 2.2GPA
CrewAI
Free plan
- 2.2GPA
LlamaIndex
Free plan · from $500/mo
Document parsing and extraction platform for AI agents.
- Orkes Conductor also covers no-code.
- 2.2GPA
Kognitos
Free plan
Business process automation written in plain English.
- Orkes Conductor is open source, according to its own site.
Part 06 · Questions
Quick answers
The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
12
Questions, each answered in a line or two
The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.
Is Orkes Conductor free?
Orkes Conductor has a free plan. Developer Edition: free managed sandbox with the open-source features and most Enterprise features, for individual developers and not for production use.
How much does Orkes Conductor cost?
Orkes Conductor lists 2 plans. Developer Edition: $0.
What platforms does Orkes Conductor work on?
Orkes Conductor is available on Web.
Does Orkes Conductor have an Android app?
No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 13, 2026. Orkes Conductor is listed for Web.
Does Orkes Conductor have an iPhone app?
No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 13, 2026. Orkes Conductor is listed for Web.
Is Orkes Conductor open source?
Yes. Orkes Conductor is open source, according to its own site.
Does Orkes Conductor have an API?
Yes. Orkes Conductor offers a public API, according to its own site.
What does Orkes Conductor integrate with?
Orkes Conductor's listing names Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Gemini and GitHub.
Who makes Orkes Conductor?
Orkes Conductor is made by Orkes.
What are the alternatives to Orkes Conductor?
The closest alternatives to Orkes Conductor in our directory are LangGraph, Tray.ai, CrewAI, LlamaIndex and Kognitos.
How does Orkes Conductor compare with other AI agents?
Orkes Conductor's GPA of 2.2 is higher than 81 of the 178 other AI agents we grade, and level with 41.
Could I make my own version of Orkes Conductor?
To replace Orkes Conductor you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change.
Where this guide comes from
The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from Orkes Conductor’s own pages on Nov 13, 2026, and the grades were given on Nov 13, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Orkes's own pages on 13 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews.
Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by Orkes. Prices change, so check orkes.io before you buy.
Part 07 · About
About ToolGPA
Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
7,721
Tools graded, in 95 categories
ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.
Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.
7,721
tools graded
95
categories
739
price changes on record
579
apps priced in 12 countries
What else is on toolgpa.com
- Orkes Conductor, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/orkes-conductor
- How grades are givenThe rules behind every letter and every GPAtoolgpa.com/grades
- Value chartsWhat each tool costs against what it scores, for every categorytoolgpa.com/charts
- CompareAny two tools side by side, plan by plantoolgpa.com/compare
- Price changesEvery price rise and cut on record, each with its sourcetoolgpa.com/price-changes
- Prices by countryWhat apps cost on the App Store in 12 countriestoolgpa.com/prices-by-country
- Pay lessEvery public discount: yearly billing, students, nonprofitstoolgpa.com/save
- Keep or makeWhich tools are worth paying for, and which you could build yourselftoolgpa.com/keep-or-make
Scan for the live page
Prices and grades as they are today
Quoting this guide?
Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:
ToolGPA, "Orkes Conductor: The Insider's Guide", checked Nov 13, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/orkes-conductor
Know someone choosing between AI agents?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/orkes-conductor/guide
ToolGPA elsewhere: youtube.com/@toolgpa
See our other guides
The best-graded AI agents after Orkes Conductor, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.
- AI Agents Insider's GuideEvery one of the 179 AI agents we grade, compared
- Genspark Insider's GuideAI workspace with an agent for research, slides, sheets and docs3.2 GPA
- Manus Insider's GuideGeneral AI agent for research, slides, websites and browser tasks3.2 GPA
- OpenClaw Insider's GuideOpen-source personal AI agent you run yourself and message in chat3.2 GPA
Choosing software? Every tool graded, every price dated.
Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what Orkes Conductor’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Orkes Conductor is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by Orkes. Prices and plans change: check orkes.io before you buy.