Comparison
agents vs agent-kernel
Verdict
Pick agents if the agents tool is a marketplace for plugins that enhances multiple AI agents, offering integration and management capabilities across several platforms, including Claude Code, Codex CLI, Cursor, OpenCode, GitHub Copilot; pick agent-kernel if agent-kernel provides an operating system for scalable enterprise AI agents, supporting deployment and orchestration at scale with native integration support for MCP and A2A.
Markdown twin · agents alternatives · agent-kernel alternatives
GraphCanon updated Sep 20, 2026
5views this month
vs
Trust & integrity
| Signal | agents | agent-kernel |
|---|---|---|
| Maintenance | Very active (1d since push) As of Sep 20, 2026 · github_public_v1 | Very active (1d since push) As of Sep 13, 2026 · github_public_v1 |
| Provenance | Not a fork · Personal account As of Sep 20, 2026 · github_public_v1 | Not a fork · Organization account As of Sep 13, 2026 · github_public_v1 |
| OSV dependency advisories | No lockfile (source not queried) As of Jul 11, 2026 · osv@v1 | No lockfile (source not queried) As of Jul 15, 2026 · osv@v1 |
| deps.dev advisories | Not queried deps.dev@v1 | Not queried deps.dev@v1 |
| OpenSSF Scorecard | Not queried openssf-scorecard@v1 | Not queried openssf-scorecard@v1 |
Tagline
- agents
- Multi-harness agentic plugin marketplace for various AI agents
- agent-kernel
- The Operating System for Scalable Enterprise AI Agents
Stars
- agents
- 40k
- agent-kernel
- 188
Forks
- agents
- 4.2k
- agent-kernel
- 86
Open issues
- agents
- 12
- agent-kernel
- 137
Language
- agents
- Python
- agent-kernel
- Python
Adopt for
- agents
- The agents tool is a marketplace for plugins that enhances multiple AI agents, offering integration and management capabilities across several platforms, including Claude Code, Codex CLI, Cursor, OpenCode, GitHub Copilot
- agent-kernel
- Agent-kernel provides an operating system for scalable enterprise AI agents, supporting deployment and orchestration at scale with native integration support for MCP and A2A.
Persona
- agents
- -
- agent-kernel
- -
Runtime
- agents
- -
- agent-kernel
- -
License
- agents
- MIT
- agent-kernel
- Apache-2.0
Last pushed
- agents
- Sep 19, 2026
- agent-kernel
- Sep 11, 2026
Categories
- agents
- AI Agents, Developer Tools
- agent-kernel
- AI Agents
Trust and health
Open issues (now)
- agents
- 12
- agent-kernel
- 137
Stars delta
- agents
- +895 (30d)
- agent-kernel
- +75 (30d)
Open issues delta
- agents
- +7 (30d)
- agent-kernel
- +9 (30d)
Owner type
- agents
- User
- agent-kernel
- Organization
Full report
- agents
- Trust report
- agent-kernel
- Trust report
Choose agents if…
- License: agents is MIT, agent-kernel is Apache-2.0.
- Tags unique to agents: agent-skills, agentic-ai, automation, prompt-engineering.
- Also covers Developer Tools.
- You are working specifically within the ecosystems of Claude Code, Codex CLI, Cursor, OpenCode, GitHub Copilot, or Gemini CLI, as it provides tailored plugins for these environments
When NOT to use agents
- You are working solely within a niche environment that isn't one of the supported platforms (like Claude Code, Codex CLI, etc.) because it may not offer compatible plugins or extensive support
- Your project requirements do not include interoperability between multiple AI agents and you only need to leverage functionalities from a single AI agent with a robust in-built plugin ecosystem
Choose agent-kernel if…
- License: agent-kernel is Apache-2.0, agents is MIT.
- Requirements: It requires Python versions between 3.12 and 3.13.x.; Supports deployment to various environments such as AWS Lambda, ECS, Azure Functions, or Container Apps via one Terraform module..
- Tags unique to agent-kernel: a2a, adk, aws, azure.
- If you require seamless scalability across different cloud providers like AWS and Azure without lock-in or rewrites.
When NOT to use agent-kernel
- If your project is confined to a single, specific AI framework which doesn't require the flexibility Agent-kernel offers.
- When you do not have Python version 3.12 - 3.13.x, as it's the required runtime environment.
Explore
Sources
Every stat on this page traces to a dated GitHub sync, license file, enrichment field, or trust scan.
- GitHub stars (wshobson/agents) · observed Sep 20, 2026
- GitHub forks (wshobson/agents) · observed Sep 20, 2026
- Last push (wshobson/agents) · observed Sep 19, 2026
- License file (MIT) · observed Sep 20, 2026
- Decision facts (enrichment) · observed Jul 11, 2026
- Trust scan (lockfile / OSV) · observed Jul 11, 2026
- GitHub stars (yaalalabs/agent-kernel) · observed Sep 20, 2026
- GitHub forks (yaalalabs/agent-kernel) · observed Sep 20, 2026
- Last push (yaalalabs/agent-kernel) · observed Sep 11, 2026
- License file (Apache-2.0) · observed Sep 20, 2026
- Decision facts (enrichment) · observed Jul 16, 2026
- Trust scan (lockfile / OSV) · observed Jul 15, 2026
GitHub stars on cards: agents 40k · agent-kernel 188 (synced Sep 20, 2026).
Common questions
- What is the difference between agents and agent-kernel?
- agents: Multi-harness agentic plugin marketplace for various AI agents. agent-kernel: The Operating System for Scalable Enterprise AI Agents. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories.
- When should I choose agents over agent-kernel?
- Choose agents over agent-kernel when License: agents is MIT, agent-kernel is Apache-2.0; Tags unique to agents: agent-skills, agentic-ai, automation, prompt-engineering; Also covers Developer Tools; You are working specifically within the ecosystems of Claude Code, Codex CLI, Cursor, OpenCode, GitHub Copilot, or Gemini CLI, as it provides tailored plugins for these environments.
- When should I choose agent-kernel over agents?
- Choose agent-kernel over agents when License: agent-kernel is Apache-2.0, agents is MIT; Requirements: It requires Python versions between 3.12 and 3.13.x.; Supports deployment to various environments such as AWS Lambda, ECS, Azure Functions, or Container Apps via one Terraform module.; Tags unique to agent-kernel: a2a, adk, aws, azure; If you require seamless scalability across different cloud providers like AWS and Azure without lock-in or rewrites.
- When should I avoid agents?
- You are working solely within a niche environment that isn't one of the supported platforms (like Claude Code, Codex CLI, etc.) because it may not offer compatible plugins or extensive support Your project requirements do not include interoperability between multiple AI agents and you only need to leverage functionalities from a single AI agent with a robust in-built plugin ecosystem
- When should I avoid agent-kernel?
- If your project is confined to a single, specific AI framework which doesn't require the flexibility Agent-kernel offers. When you do not have Python version 3.12 - 3.13.x, as it's the required runtime environment.
- Is agents or agent-kernel more popular on GitHub?
- agents has more GitHub stars (39,823 vs 188). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints.
- Are agents and agent-kernel open source?
- Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (agents: MIT, agent-kernel: Apache-2.0).
- Where can I find alternatives to agents or agent-kernel?
- GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at agents alternatives and agent-kernel alternatives (agents markdown twin, agent-kernel markdown twin), 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 mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers.
- Which is better maintained, agents or agent-kernel?
- agents: Very active. agent-kernel: Very active. 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 agents and agent-kernel?
- GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: agents trust report; agent-kernel trust report.