Dify
Jenkins
| Feature | Dify | Jenkins |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $59/mo | Free only |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.5 / 5 | 4.2 / 5 |
| Best For | ai-builders, non-technical-teams, enterprises, developers | enterprise-teams, on-premise-deployments, complex-pipelines, legacy-systems |
| Founded | 2023 | 2011 |
| Visual Orchestration | ✓ | ✗ |
| Rag Pipeline | ✓ | ✗ |
| Agent Mode | ✓ | ✗ |
| Multi Model | ✓ | ✗ |
| Knowledge Base | ✓ | ✗ |
| Api Access | ✓ | ✗ |
| Pipeline As Code | ✗ | ✓ |
| Plugins | ✗ | ✓ |
| Distributed Builds | ✗ | ✓ |
| Pipeline Visualization | ✗ | ✓ |
| Scm Integration | ✗ | ✓ |
| Artifact Management | ✗ | ✓ |
| Notifications | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Dify Pros
- Open-source and self-hostable
- Visual workflow builder
- Built-in RAG pipeline
- Multi-model support
✗ Dify Cons
- Complex for simple chatbots
- Self-hosting requires resources
- Documentation improving
✓ Jenkins Pros
- Completely free and open source
- Extremely extensible with 1,800+ plugins
- Mature and battle-tested over many years
- Supports any programming language and platform
✗ Jenkins Cons
- Dated UI feels old compared to modern CI tools
- Requires significant maintenance and administration
- Groovy-based Jenkinsfiles have steep learning curve
The Verdict
Dify is built for ai builders and non technical teams, with a focus on visual-orchestration and rag-pipeline. Jenkins targets enterprise teams and on premise deployments and leads with pipeline-as-code and plugins.
Jenkins uses custom enterprise pricing, while Dify starts at $59/mo — a tangible advantage for teams with a fixed budget.
Both offer free plans, so you can test each with your real workflow before committing to a subscription.
Feature-wise, Jenkins offers broader built-in capabilities (7 features vs 6), while Dify takes a more focused approach — which can mean a simpler, faster onboarding experience.
Bottom line: Dify has a slight overall edge — but if completely free and open source matters most to you, Jenkins may still be the right call.