Graphile Worker vs Inngest: Which is Better in 2026?
Choosing between Graphile Worker and Inngest? Both are popular background jobs & workflows tools. Below we compare them on pricing, free tiers, features, and pros & cons so you can pick the right fit for your stack.
Graphile Worker is for: Node.js teams on PostgreSQL who want a job queue that adds no new infrastructure.
Inngest is for: TypeScript, Python and Go teams who want durable multi-step functions and event-driven jobs without running queue infrastructure.
Quick verdict
There’s no single winner; pick on your constraint. Choose Graphile Worker if your Node.js app already uses Postgres and you don’t want to add Redis or a hosted queue. Choose Inngest if you want multi-step functions where each step retries and keeps its state, without running queues or workers.
Graphile Worker vs Inngest: Side by Side
| Graphile Worker | Inngest | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Background Jobs & Workflows | Background Jobs & Workflows |
| What it is | Open-source job queue library | Hosted durable workflow platform |
| Languages | Node.js | TypeScript, Python, Go, Kotlin |
| What it runs on | Your PostgreSQL | Inngest Cloud or self-hosted; steps run in your app |
| How you pay | Free (MIT); sponsorship and paid support | Monthly plan plus per-execution overage |
| Free access | Full open-source library | 50,000 executions a month |
| Pricing | Free | Free · paid from $99/mo |
| Starting price | Free tier available | Free tier available |
| Free tier | ||
| Rating | 4.4 | 4.6 |
| Best for | Background Jobs & Workflows: Postgres, Node.js, no extra infrastructure | Background Jobs & Workflows: durable functions, event-driven jobs, serverless apps |
Pros & Cons
- No extra infrastructure (uses Postgres)
- Free and open-source
- Low latency
- Transactional job enqueue
- Node.js only
- Tied to Postgres
- Smaller ecosystem than BullMQ
- No infrastructure to run
- Durable multi-step workflows
- Event-driven + cron in one model
- Great local dev experience
- Execution-based pricing can add up at scale
- Newer ecosystem than Celery/Sidekiq
Key Features Compared
Graphile Worker
- Open source under the MIT license, funded by sponsorship
- Runs on your existing PostgreSQL; jobs start in milliseconds via LISTEN/NOTIFY
- Automatic retries with exponential backoff
- Repeating tasks with minute granularity and optional backfill
- Up to 10,000 jobs a second, per the project
- Paid priority support from the maintainer
Inngest
- Free: 50,000 executions a month, 5 concurrent steps, 5 seats and 24-hour trace history; work pauses at the quota
- Pro from $99 a month with 1M executions, 100 concurrent steps and 7-day trace history
- Pro overage: $50 per extra 1M executions
- Business from $499 a month with 10M executions and 14-day trace history; Enterprise custom
- Self-hosting supported since the 1.0 release, on SQLite by default or your own Postgres and Redis
- SDKs for TypeScript, Python, Go and Kotlin
Choose Graphile Worker if…
- Your Node.js app already uses Postgres and you don’t want to add Redis or a hosted queue.
- You want to schedule jobs in the same database as your data.
- You want a free, MIT-licensed library.
Choose Inngest if…
- You want multi-step functions where each step retries and keeps its state, without running queues or workers.
- You trigger background work from events and cron schedules in the same codebase.
- You deploy to serverless platforms and want jobs to run inside your existing app.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Graphile Worker better than Inngest?⌄
There’s no single winner; pick on your constraint. Choose Graphile Worker if your Node.js app already uses Postgres and you don’t want to add Redis or a hosted queue. Choose Inngest if you want multi-step functions where each step retries and keeps its state, without running queues or workers.
What is the difference between Graphile Worker and Inngest?⌄
What it is. Graphile Worker: Open-source job queue library. Inngest: Hosted durable workflow platform. Languages. Graphile Worker: Node.js. Inngest: TypeScript, Python, Go, Kotlin. What it runs on. Graphile Worker: Your PostgreSQL. Inngest: Inngest Cloud or self-hosted; steps run in your app. How you pay. Graphile Worker: Free (MIT); sponsorship and paid support. Inngest: Monthly plan plus per-execution overage. Free access. Graphile Worker: Full open-source library. Inngest: 50,000 executions a month.
Graphile Worker vs Inngest: which is cheaper?⌄
Graphile Worker pricing: Free. Inngest pricing: Free · paid from $99/mo. Confirm current pricing on each tool's official site, as plans change.
Which is rated higher, Graphile Worker or Inngest?⌄
In our catalog, Graphile Worker rates 4.4 out of 5 and Inngest rates 4.6 out of 5, so Inngest has a slight edge on reviews.
When should I skip both Graphile Worker and Inngest?⌄
Skip Graphile Worker if you need throughput beyond one Postgres database. BullMQ runs on Redis. Skip Inngest if your jobs are simple and you already run Redis. BullMQ runs on your own Redis with no per-execution bill.
Sources · tool facts checked November 2026
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