Airbyte is an open-source, self-hosted ELT platform with lower costs and greater customization flexibility, while Fivetran is a fully managed SaaS solution offering superior ease-of-use and pre-built connectors with enterprise-grade support. Airbyte suits data teams prioritizing cost control and custom integrations; Fivetran suits enterprises wanting minimal operational overhead.
Airbyte vs Fivetran — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Open-source ELT platform for building reliable data pipelines with 500+ connectors.
Fully managed SaaS ELT platform offering pre-built connectors and enterprise data integration with minimal setup.
Deployment Model. Pricing Model. Pre-built Connectors. Time to Deploy. Customization & Extensibility. Setup Complexity. Data Transformation Support
Choose Airbyte if you have technical resources, prioritize cost efficiency, need extensive customization, or require control over infrastructure and data residency. Choose Fivetran if you need fast deployment, minimal operational overhead, enterprise-grade reliability, and prefer a managed solution with 24/7 support.
Airbyte: $0 (open-source) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: 450+ connectors | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: 1-2 hours (pre-built connector) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: $0 (self-hosted) or $100+ | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: SQL, dbt, Python (limited) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Unlimited (self-hosted dependent) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Yes (ELv2 license) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: $0 (open-source) / $500 (cloud) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Real-time (CDC) or 1+ min | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: 30-120 (self-hosted) / 5-15 (cloud) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Self-hosted, Cloud, Hybrid | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: dbt + Python/SQL + APIs | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Paid add-on (community default) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: SOC 2 (cloud), depends on self-hosting | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Basic (scheduled, triggered) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Beginner-Intermediate (UI-based) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: 3/10 (normalization only) | Fivetran: Limited (basic field mapping & normalization)
Airbyte: Seat + sync volume-based | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Basic (connection-level monitoring) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Proprietary core + BSL source-available | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Self-hosted, Cloud, Docker, Kubernetes | Fivetran: Cloud-managed only
Airbyte: Yes (dedicated + SLA) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Free (Community Edition) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: 100+ custom connectors | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: 5-15 (UI setup) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Data Integration (ELT) | Fivetran: N/A
Starting Monthly Cost (Single Connector)
Airbyte: $0 (self-hosted), $50-150 (cloud) | Fivetran: $120-600
Airbyte: 3-6 weeks | Fivetran: 1-2 weeks
Airbyte: Community (best-effort), paid enterprise optional | Fivetran: 24/7 guaranteed SLA
Airbyte: Low-code Python/Java SDK | Fivetran: Requires Fivetran consulting
Airbyte: Open-source (Apache 2.0) | Fivetran: Proprietary (closed-source)
Airbyte: Available in cloud/enterprise plans | Fivetran: Native, built-in feature
Airbyte: $0 (self-hosted) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: No (requires Collibra, Alation, etc.) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Yes (Elastic License) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Yes (AWS, GCP, Azure, on-prem) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: 3-4 (self-hosted) / 2 (cloud) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: 300-600 (batch) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: 3/10 (UI-driven) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Limited via custom connectors | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: 2-3 days (visual builder) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: SSPL (commercial redistribution blocked) | Fivetran: N/A
Estimated Monthly Cost (1,000 syncs/month, self-hosted)
Airbyte: $500-1,500 (Airbyte Cloud) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: 5 (YAML + limited Python) | Fivetran: N/A
Community Taps/Targets via Singer Protocol
Airbyte: Custom connectors only | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Full visual UI included | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Variable (infrastructure-based) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Community + Enterprise (M-F business hours) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Supported (Python, Java, YAML) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Full control (self-hosted option) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: 600+ | Fivetran: 500+ connectors
Airbyte: $0 (open-source) or $6,000 | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: 5-60 minutes (batch) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: Snowflake, BigQuery, Redshift, Databricks, DuckDB, Postgres | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: 15-20 (via destinations) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: 7-14 (with engineering) | Fivetran: N/A
Airbyte: N/A | Fivetran: 8 major (Snowflake, BigQuery, Redshift, Databricks, etc.)
Airbyte: N/A | Fivetran: Not open-source
Airbyte: N/A | Fivetran: SaaS only (no self-hosted option)
How to choose between Airbyte and Fivetran
Airbyte vs Fivetran — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for Airbyte vs Fivetran. Contains 81 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
Airbyte vs Fivetran — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Airbyte vs Fivetran.
How much does Airbyte cost compared to Fivetran?
Airbyte's open-source version is free, though self-hosting requires infrastructure costs (~$500-$1,500/month depending on scale). Airbyte Cloud starts at $100/month. Fivetran has no free tier and starts at $200/month minimum, with typical enterprise implementations costing $3,600-$9,000+ annually. For cost-conscious organizations, Airbyte offers 60-80% savings, but Fivetran's higher cost includes managed infrastructure and enterprise support.
Fivetran is significantly faster: most implementations deploy in 1-3 days with no infrastructure setup required. Airbyte's self-hosted option typically requires 2-4 weeks due to infrastructure provisioning, Kubernetes setup, and DevOps involvement. Airbyte Cloud offers faster deployment (5-10 days) but still requires more manual configuration than Fivetran's fully managed approach.
Can I use Airbyte and Fivetran for custom/proprietary data sources?
Airbyte excels here: with open-source code access, teams can build custom connectors in Python within days. Fivetran requires submitting feature requests for new connectors, with approval and development timelines of weeks to months. If you have proprietary APIs or legacy systems, Airbyte is the superior choice for rapid custom integration.
What's the difference in reliability and uptime?
Fivetran guarantees 99.9% uptime (3.65 hours downtime/year) with 24/7 enterprise support and automatic infrastructure management. Airbyte Cloud offers 99% uptime; self-hosted versions depend entirely on your infrastructure. For mission-critical pipelines, Fivetran's managed reliability is preferable, but Airbyte Cloud is sufficient for most mid-market organizations.
Do I need a data engineer to set up and maintain each platform?
Fivetran requires minimal technical expertise; non-technical analysts can configure pipelines via UI with no coding. Airbyte Cloud is similar but self-hosted Airbyte requires dedicated DevOps engineers for infrastructure, monitoring, and updates. If your team lacks data engineering resources, Fivetran eliminates this burden entirely; Airbyte assumes you have or can hire technical talent.
How to Choose Between Airbyte and Fivetran
Deployment Model: Airbyte has Open-source, self-hosted or cloud-managed, while Fivetran has Fully managed SaaS only.
Pricing Model: Airbyte has $0 open-source + infrastructure costs, or $100-$1,500/month cloud, while Fivetran has $100-$5,000+/month based on data volume.
Pre-built Connectors: Airbyte has 600+ connectors (mix of community and certified), while Fivetran has 1,000+ fully-managed, certified connectors.
Time to Deploy: Airbyte has 2-4 weeks (self-hosted setup required), while Fivetran has 1-3 days (fully managed).
Customization & Extensibility: Airbyte has High (open-source code, custom connectors), while Fivetran has Low (proprietary platform, limited customization).
Setup Complexity: Airbyte has Moderate to high (requires DevOps/engineering resources), while Fivetran has Low (UI-driven, no coding required).
Data Transformation Support: Airbyte has Limited (basic transformation, relies on dbt/downstream tools), while Fivetran has Moderate (native SQL transformations available).