Cloud subscriptions and self-hosted software are different options. Your own execution infrastructure adds separate costs.
Prefect pricing in 2026
Free; paid Cloud from $100/month
Open source
$0 license
- Self-hosted; infrastructure and operations extra
Hobby
Free
- 5 deployments
- 500 Serverless minutes/month
Starter
$100/month
- 20 deployments
- 75 Serverless hours/month
Team
$100/user/month
- 100 deployments
- 225 Serverless hours/month
- Service accounts
Enterprise
Custom quote
- SSO and advanced access controls
- Custom compute allowance
Every figure on this page was read from Prefect’s own pricing page on 7 Oct 2026. Prices change without notice.
Questions people ask
Is Prefect free?
The open-source software has no license charge, and Prefect Cloud offers a free Hobby plan. Self-hosting still involves infrastructure and maintenance costs. Choose the free route that matches who will operate the service.
Do I need Python to use Prefect?
Yes, Prefect's workflow model is built around Python functions. It's a better fit for developers and data engineers than for someone seeking a visual, no-code automation builder.
Is Prefect better than Airflow?
I'd favor Prefect for an existing Python codebase that needs orchestration with relatively little restructuring. I'd retain Airflow when the team already operates it effectively and there isn't a specific migration benefit.
Can Prefect run on my own infrastructure?
Yes. Hybrid work pools use workers in your environment, while supported push pools launch jobs in your cloud account without a persistent worker. Self-hosting the orchestration service is a separate option from choosing where jobs execute.
Does Prefect automatically fix failed workflows?
No. It provides retries, caching, and automation controls, but you must configure them to suit the workload. Errors in business logic and unsafe repeated writes still require application-level fixes.