--- title: "airflow vs crane" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/apache-airflow-vs-michaelsauter-crane" tools: ["apache-airflow", "michaelsauter-crane"] --- # airflow vs crane *GraphCanon updated Jul 15, 2026* ## Verdict Pick airflow when airflow is primarily Python; crane is Go; pick crane when crane is primarily Go; airflow is Python. [airflow](https://airflow.apache.org/) reports 46k GitHub stars, 17k forks, and 1.7k open issues, last pushed Jul 15, 2026. [crane](https://github.com/michaelsauter/crane) has 987 stars, 61 forks, and 14 open issues, last pushed Jul 25, 2023. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [airflow's repository](https://github.com/apache/airflow) and [crane's repository](https://github.com/michaelsauter/crane). | | [airflow](/tools/apache-airflow.md) | [crane](/tools/michaelsauter-crane.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | Apache Airflow - A platform to programmatically author, schedule, and monitor workflows | Crane - Lift containers with ease | | Stars | 46,124 | 987 | | Forks | 17,387 | 61 | | Open issues | 1,728 | 14 | | Language | Python | Go | | Adopt for | - | - | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | Apache-2.0 | MIT | | Categories | AI Agents, Computer Vision, Data & Retrieval | AI Agents | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [airflow](/tools/apache-airflow.md) | [crane](/tools/michaelsauter-crane.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Maintenance | Very active (96%) | Dormant (18%) | | Days since push | 0d | 1086d | | Open issues (now) | 1.7k | 14 | | Owner type | Organization | User | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/apache-airflow/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/michaelsauter-crane/trust.md) | ## Choose when ### Choose airflow if… - airflow is primarily Python; crane is Go. - License: airflow is Apache-2.0, crane is MIT. - Tags unique to airflow: airflow, apache, apache-airflow, automation. - Also covers Computer Vision, Data & Retrieval. - airflow ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment. ### Choose crane if… - crane is primarily Go; airflow is Python. - License: crane is MIT, airflow is Apache-2.0. - Tags unique to crane: docker, go, orchestration, unison. ## When NOT to use airflow - AI Agents: Don't use an agent loop when a deterministic workflow would do; agents add latency, cost, and non-determinism. - Data & Retrieval: Skip a heavy ingestion framework when your corpus is small and static; a script plus the embedding API is enough. ## When NOT to use crane - Last GitHub push was 1086 days ago (dormant maintenance, Jul 25, 2023). Validate activity before betting a new project on crane. - AI Agents: Don't use an agent loop when a deterministic workflow would do; agents add latency, cost, and non-determinism. ## Common questions ### What is the difference between airflow and crane? airflow: Apache Airflow - A platform to programmatically author, schedule, and monitor workflows. crane: Crane - Lift containers with ease. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories. ### When should I choose airflow over crane? Choose airflow over crane when airflow is primarily Python; crane is Go; License: airflow is Apache-2.0, crane is MIT; Tags unique to airflow: airflow, apache, apache-airflow, automation; Also covers Computer Vision, Data & Retrieval; airflow ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment. ### When should I choose crane over airflow? Choose crane over airflow when crane is primarily Go; airflow is Python; License: crane is MIT, airflow is Apache-2.0; Tags unique to crane: docker, go, orchestration, unison. ### When should I avoid airflow? AI Agents: Don't use an agent loop when a deterministic workflow would do; agents add latency, cost, and non-determinism. Data & Retrieval: Skip a heavy ingestion framework when your corpus is small and static; a script plus the embedding API is enough. ### When should I avoid crane? Last GitHub push was 1086 days ago (dormant maintenance, Jul 25, 2023). Validate activity before betting a new project on crane. AI Agents: Don't use an agent loop when a deterministic workflow would do; agents add latency, cost, and non-determinism. ### Is airflow or crane more popular on GitHub? airflow has more GitHub stars (46,124 vs 987). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are airflow and crane open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (airflow: Apache-2.0, crane: MIT). ### Where can I find alternatives to airflow or crane? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [airflow alternatives](/tools/apache-airflow/alternatives) and [crane alternatives](/tools/michaelsauter-crane/alternatives) ([airflow markdown twin](/tools/apache-airflow/alternatives.md), [crane markdown twin](/tools/michaelsauter-crane/alternatives.md)), ranked by typed relationship edges rather than popularity votes. ### Is there a machine-readable version of this comparison? Yes. The markdown twin at [this comparison](/compare/apache-airflow-vs-michaelsauter-crane.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, airflow or crane? airflow: Very active. crane: Dormant. Compare maintenance labels, days since push, and release cadence in the trust section below - stars alone do not measure maintenance. ### Where are the full trust reports for airflow and crane? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [airflow trust report](/tools/apache-airflow/trust); [crane trust report](/tools/michaelsauter-crane/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=apache-airflow`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=apache-airflow) - LLM index: [/llms.txt](/llms.txt) - Full corpus: [/llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt) _GraphCanon - The knowledge graph for AI development. https://www.graphcanon.com/_