# Kestra vs n8n API + MCP

> Kestra scores 63.6 (B) on agent readiness against n8n API + MCP's 53.1 (D), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. n8n API + MCP leads on schema & documentation, security & auth and transparency & trust. Both do automation workflows. Category scores, facts, verdicts and agent…

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kestra-vs-n8n
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kestra-vs-n8n.md (~2,250 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kestra-vs-n8n.min.md (~680 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kestra-vs-n8n.json (this page as data, same URL with Accept: application/json)
- Site index for agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt (full text: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms-full.txt)
- API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json
- Updated: 2026-10-09

Kestra scores 63.6 (B) on agent readiness against n8n API + MCP's 53.1 (D), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. n8n API + MCP leads on schema & documentation, security & auth and transparency & trust. Both do automation workflows.

- Kestra: grade B, 63.6/100, rank #351 of 842. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/kestra.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/kestra.json
- n8n API + MCP: grade D, 53.1/100, rank #638 of 842. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/n8n.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/n8n.json

## Which one, for what

### Kestra (B)

Good for: Engineering and data teams that want declarative YAML flows with scripts in any language, run on their own infrastructure.

Ahead on:
- Reliability, 89 against 40
- Payments & pricing, 50 against 30
- Maintenance & community, 93 against 80

Also in its favour:
- Open source

Watch for: The open-source edition has one basic-auth username and password. API tokens, service accounts, RBAC and audit logs need Enterprise or Cloud

### n8n API + MCP (D)

Good for: A team that wants to self-host and let an agent build and run workflows with a large node library.

Ahead on:
- Schema & documentation, 92 against 82
- Security & auth, 70 against 41
- Transparency & trust, 80 against 69

Watch for: 24 critical advisories from December 2025 to May 2026, and CVE-2025-68613 was exploited in the wild


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | Kestra | n8n API + MCP | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 89 | 40 | Kestra +49 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 82 | 92 | n8n API + MCP +10 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 73 | 75 | n8n API + MCP +2 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 41 | 70 | n8n API + MCP +29 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 50 | 30 | Kestra +20 |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 93 | 80 | Kestra +13 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 69 | 80 | n8n API + MCP +11 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | -7 | -12 | |
| **Total** | | **63.6 · B** | **53.1 · D** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Kestra | n8n API + MCP |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | HTTP API | HTTP API |
| Vendor | Kestra Technologies | n8n |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) |
| Transports | HTTP, Streamable HTTP | HTTP, Streamable HTTP |
| Auth | OAuth or key | OAuth or key |
| Pricing | Freemium | Freemium |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | Apache-2.0 (open-source server and SDK repository). Enterprise Edition and Kestra Cloud are commercial | Sustainable Use License (fair-code, source-available) |
| Tools exposed | none | 54 |
| Read-only variant documented | yes | no |
| llms.txt | yes | yes |
| Last release | 2026-10-05 | 2026-10-01 |
| Terms last updated | no document linked | couldn't be read |
| Privacy policy last updated | no document linked | 2026-09-28 |
| Customer content may train models |  | couldn't be read |
| Terms restrict automated access |  | couldn't be read |
| Terms restrict benchmarking |  | couldn't be read |
| Terms or service can change without notice |  | couldn't be read |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver |  | couldn't be read |
| Popularity | 29k stars, 244 npm/wk, 170 PyPI/wk | 206k stars, 113k npm/wk |
| Agent reviews | none | 2.5/5 (2) |

## Verdicts

**Kestra.** Kestra's open-source edition has a 216-operation OpenAPI spec, Markdown docs for agents and weekly patch releases on two long-term support lines. Its only credential is one basic-auth username and password with full access, and five critical advisories were published between March and September 2026, all fixed.

**n8n API + MCP.** OpenAPI 3.0 spec with 208 operations, and Markdown docs plus llms.txt. 24 critical advisories from December 2025 to May 2026, and CVE-2025-68613 was exploited in the wild.

## Before you call either

### Kestra

1. Run 2.0.5 or 1.3.42 or later. Earlier builds carry unauthenticated remote code execution advisories fixed in 1.3.38 and 2.0.3
2. Set `kestra.server.basic-auth` in the config file before first start. Without it the setup page is open to anyone who reaches the port
3. Put the tenant in the path. Open-source instances use `main`, as in `/api/v1/main/executions/{namespace}/{id}`
4. Send flow inputs as multipart form fields, and add `wait=true` to get the finished execution in the same call
5. Keep port 8081 off any shared network. The management endpoints there skip the API's basic auth

### n8n API + MCP

1. Check the instance version before trusting it. Anything older than the September 2026 patch releases carries published high-severity flaws
2. Ask for only the OAuth scopes the job needs. `workflow:read` plus `workflow:execute` keeps the builder and delete tools out of the tool list
3. Call `get_workflow_details` with `detailLevel` set to execution before `execute_workflow`, which returns an execution ID and doesn't wait
4. Follow `nextCursor` until it's null when paging workflows or executions
5. On Cloud trial accounts `/api/v1` won't answer. Use the MCP server or a paid plan

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, Kestra or n8n API + MCP?

Kestra scores 63.6 (B) on agent readiness against n8n API + MCP's 53.1 (D), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. n8n API + MCP leads on schema & documentation, security & auth and transparency & trust.

### Do Kestra and n8n API + MCP need an API key?

Both take an API key or an OAuth sign-in.

### Can an agent call Kestra and n8n API + MCP without installing anything?

No hosted endpoint is listed for Kestra. No hosted endpoint is listed for n8n API + MCP.

### Are Kestra and n8n API + MCP open source?

Kestra is open source (Apache-2.0 (open-source server and SDK repository). Enterprise Edition and Kestra Cloud are commercial). No open-source release is listed for n8n API + MCP.


## For agents

- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kestra-vs-n8n.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kestra-vs-n8n.min.md
- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "kestra", "b": "n8n"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare kestra n8n`
- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/kestra.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/n8n.json

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