Dust
Dust came first with 3 out of 5, scoring higher than Dify on reliability, setup, flexibility and value. Pick it if your team wants shared agents on company data without code, from 30 EUR a month.
We tested Dify for 7 days, from October 17 to October 23, 2026. Like every tool in our AI agent builders test, it had to build three agents: one for support questions, one to qualify leads and one to look up data. We ran each agent 20 times with the same inputs.
Dify scored 2.5 out of 5 overall and came second of the eight builders we tested. Its best result was integrations: 7 of the 10 connections we needed worked without code. But our agents got only 37 of 60 runs right, so more than a third went wrong, and each agent took around 137 minutes to build.
Dify suits technical teams that want an open-source builder they can host themselves, or a cloud plan with clear published prices. If you're not technical and want a guided, ready-made support bot, it will feel like hard work.
How we scored it
Dify scored 2.5 out of 5 overall. Integrations was its strongest part at 3, reliability, ease of setup and flexibility scored 2.5, and value for money was lowest at 2.
Reliability2.5
Ease of setup2.5
Flexibility2.5
Integrations3.0
Value for money2.0
Overall score: 2.5 / 5, the average of the five parts, rounded to the nearest half point.
- Reliability (2.5/5): Our three agents got 13, 12 and 12 of their 20 runs right, so roughly one run in three failed.
- Ease of setup (2.5/5): Each agent took around 137 minutes to build from sign-up, which is quicker than some rivals but still a long session.
- Flexibility (2.5/5): It handled all three agents and lets you publish them as an app, API, embed or tool, but it flagged only 7 of 12 failure cases.
- Integrations (3/5): 7 of the 10 connections our workflows needed were available without code, the best part of its result.
- Value for money (2/5): The free cloud plan has only 200 message credits in total, and paid cloud plans are only shown with yearly billing.
Best of 2026
See the ranking →
The best AI agent builders
Before you pick Dify, see how all 8 tools ranked in the same test.
Dify in plain terms
Dify is a visual workspace for building AI apps, agents and the search systems that let an AI answer from your own documents. You design a workflow on a canvas, feed it your files, websites or drives, add tools from its marketplace and publish the result as a web app, an API, an embed on your site or a tool other AI apps can call.
It's open source. You can host the free Community edition yourself, use Dify's cloud on a free or paid plan, or buy a self-hosted Enterprise licence. The company behind it is LangGenius, Inc., which is independent. Dify has around 160,000 stars on GitHub, more than any other tool in our lineup.
That puts it closer to Langflow, another open-source visual builder, than to tools in our AI chat section such as Voiceflow or Botpress, which focus on customer chat and voice.
What happens after you sign up
Building with Dify follows four steps, whether you use its cloud or host it yourself.
1. Build the workflow. Design a workflow or an agent in Workflow Studio, the visual builder, either by chatting or by setting it up step by step.
2. Feed it knowledge. Use the Knowledge Pipeline to load your documents, split them up, index them and test what the agent finds.
3. Add plugins. Install AI model providers, tools and data sources from the Marketplace.
4. Publish and monitor. Ship the result as an app, API, embed or MCP tool, then watch the logs to see how it performs.
What you get
Most of Dify's building features are on every plan, including the free one. The governance features are Enterprise only.
Workflow Studio
A visual builder with testing and debugging built in.
Agents
Build an agent by chatting or by hand, then use it alone or as one step in a bigger workflow.
Knowledge Pipeline
Loads and indexes your documents so agents answer from your own content. How many documents you can add depends on the plan.
Publishing options
Share what you build as a hosted app, an API, an embed on your website or an MCP tool.
Triggers
Start workflows automatically when something happens. The free plan allows 3,000 events and Team has no limit.
Enterprise controls
Single sign-on, role-based access and audit logs for larger companies on the Enterprise plan.
Who gets the most out of Dify
Dify rewards people who are comfortable with technical tools. If someone on your team can run software on a server or work with APIs, it gives you a lot of control.
A good fit for
- Developers who want to host it themselves
- Teams building AI answers over their own documents
- Companies that want a plugin marketplace and many publishing options
- Larger firms needing sign-on controls and audit logs
Not a good fit for
- Teams that need HIPAA, which isn't confirmed
- Non-technical users who want a guided support bot
- Anyone who wants a plain open-source licence with no extra conditions
- Buyers who want to pay month to month on the cloud
Dify vs Dust, Langflow and Voiceflow
Dust was the only builder to beat Dify, with 3 out of 5. It's a shared workspace for teams building agents on company data and costs 30 EUR a month on its cheapest paid plan. Langflow tied with Dify on 2.5 and is also open source, but its hosted cloud was discontinued, so you host it yourself. Our best agent builders list ranks all eight.
Voiceflow also scored 2.5 and is built for customer-facing chat and voice agents, while Dify is a general workflow builder. Writing code against an AI model yourself is another route, but you'd have to build the interface, document handling and monitoring yourself.
| Option | Price | How it compares |
|---|---|---|
| Dify | $49.17 a month, billed yearly | Open-source visual builder for agents and workflows, in the cloud or self-hosted. |
| Dust | 30 EUR a month | Shared workspace where teams build and run AI agents on company data. |
| Langflow | Free | Free, open-source visual builder for AI agents that you host yourself. |
| Voiceflow | $60 a month | Visual builder for voice and chat agents, aimed at customer support teams. |
Our 7-day Dify test
We tested Dify from October 17 to October 23, 2026. Every tool in this group builds the same three agents: one that answers support questions from a help centre, one that qualifies a lead and books a call, and one that pulls data from a website into a sheet. The full set-up is in how we test.
From sign-up, each agent took around 137 minutes to build. Connections went better: 7 of the 10 our workflows needed were available without writing code. The other 3 would need a developer.
Then came the runs. We ran each agent 20 times with the same inputs. The support agent got 13 right, and the lead and lookup agents got 12 each. That's 37 correct runs out of 60. In real use, more than a third of customers or leads could get a wrong answer, so someone would need to check the agent's work.
We also checked how Dify handles failures. It sent an alert in 7 of 12 cases and handed the job to a person in 7 of 12. That's better than half, but it still leaves problems nobody would hear about.
The surprise was that Dify ranked second even though its reliability score of 2.5 was below Dust's 3 and level with most of the group. Its integrations score of 3, the joint highest in our lineup, helped it.
| What we measured | Result | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Runs completed correctly out of 20, for each of our three agents | Correct runs 13/20; 12/20; 12/20 | Fewer than two in three runs were right, so you'd need a person checking the output. |
| Time to build each workflow from sign-up | 137 min/agent; 3 agents | Plan on a couple of hours per agent before it works. |
| How failures were handled: alerts and hand-off to a person | Alerts 7/12; hand-off 7/12 | A little over half of the problems were flagged or passed on, so some failures could go unnoticed. |
| Connections our workflows needed that worked without code | 7/10 required connections no-code | Most of the tools we needed linked up without code, but three would still need a developer. |
Dify linked to most of our tools without code and shares the top integrations score in our lineup. But 37 of 60 correct runs means more than a third of jobs went wrong, and only 7 of 12 failures were flagged. It's a capable base for a technical team, not something to leave running alone.
Tested October 17, 2026 to October 23, 2026.
The good and the bad from our test
Joint-best integrations score
7 of the 10 connections our workflows needed worked without code, earning Dify a 3 for integrations, level with Voiceflow at the top of our lineup.
Open source with a free self-hosted option
You can host the Community edition yourself for free, or start on the free cloud Sandbox. That gives technical teams a way in with no subscription.
Clear published prices
Dify lists its cloud plans in a clear table: Professional at $590 a year and Team at $1,590 a year per workspace, so you know the cost before you talk to anyone.
More than a third of runs failed
Our agents got only 37 of 60 runs right. For a support or lead agent, that's a lot of wrong answers going to real people.
Slow to build for a visual tool
Each agent took around 137 minutes from sign-up. Non-technical users should expect it to take longer.
Thin free plan and yearly-only cloud prices
The free Sandbox has 200 message credits in total, not per month, so it runs out fast. Paid cloud plans are only shown with yearly billing.
Pros
- 7 of 10 needed connections worked without code
- Free to host yourself with the Community edition
- Publish as an app, API, embed or MCP tool
- Clear, published cloud prices
- Reports SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001:2022 and GDPR
Cons
- Only 37 of 60 test runs completed correctly
- Around 137 minutes to build each agent
- Free Sandbox has just 200 message credits in total
- Cloud plans only shown with yearly billing
- HIPAA support not confirmed
How much Dify costs
Dify has a free cloud plan, two paid cloud plans and two self-hosted options. Paid cloud plans are priced per workspace and the pricing page only shows yearly prices: Professional is $590 a year, which works out to $49.17 a month, billed yearly, and Team is $1,590 a year, or $132.50 a month, billed yearly. Monthly prices aren't shown.
Most small teams would pick Professional, with 5,000 message credits a month, 3 members and 50 apps. Team suits bigger groups that need up to 50 members. If you can run software yourself, the Community edition is free. We checked prices on November 2, 2026.
Sandbox
Free
1 workspace
- 200 message credits in total
- 5 apps and 1 member
- 50 knowledge documents
Professional
$49.17
a month, billed yearly
- 5,000 message credits a month
- 3 members and 50 apps
- Priority document processing
Team
$132.50
a month, billed yearly
- 10,000 message credits a month
- 50 members and 200 apps
- Top-priority processing
Enterprise (self-hosted)
No public price
custom quote
- Single sign-on and multiple workspaces
- Service-level agreements
- Commercial licence and support
There is no separate free trial. The free Sandbox plan is the way to try the cloud version, and the Community edition is free to host yourself.
To cancel, go to Settings, Billing and Manage, which opens a payment portal. Your workspace keeps its plan until the end of the paid period, then goes back to Sandbox. Upgrades apply straight away, while downgrades start next cycle.
Dify's docs don't cover refunds, so contact its support before you buy. Students and teachers can get the yearly Professional plan free for the first year, with no automatic renewal.
Prices checked November 2, 2026. Prices can change, so check before you buy.
Is Dify safe to use with your data?
Dify reports SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001:2022 audits and GDPR compliance, with a data processing agreement on every plan. Its docs tie SOC 2 to Enterprise, and compliance reports vary by plan. HIPAA support isn't confirmed, and we couldn't find its policy on using your data to train AI models.
Self-hosting brings its own risks. A copy you run yourself doesn't inherit the cloud's certifications, so updates and access are your job. The licence adds conditions to Apache 2.0, so check it before building a product on Dify. The free plan keeps logs for 30 days.
If you host Dify yourself, fix the version you run and limit who can install plugins.
What Dify users say
The few user ratings are positive. On G2, checked November 2, 2026, Dify has 4.1 out of 5 from 20 reviews, and on Product Hunt 4.7 out of 5 from 7 reviews. Its Trustpilot page is unclaimed and has no reviews.
Users like how easy it is to use, its wide range of integrations and how quickly they can build workflows and chatbots. The complaints are that it can feel like an early test version, and some users say it isn't ready for serious live use.
What users praise
- Ease of use
- Powerful integrations
- Building workflows and chatbots quickly
What users complain about
- Feels like an early beta at times
- Not production-ready for some reviewers
Our test fits both views. Integrations were Dify's best result, as users say, but 37 correct runs out of 60 backs up the worry that it isn't ready to run important work unchecked.
Ratings checked November 2, 2026.
Dify alternatives worth a look
Only Dust scored higher than Dify in our test.
Langflow
Langflow tied with Dify on 2.5 and was easier to set up, with a 3 for ease of setup. It's free and open source, but you host it yourself.
GPT-trainer
GPT-trainer scored 2 out of 5. It suits small businesses that want voice and chat agents linked to a CRM, from $150 a month.
Stack AI
Stack AI scored 2 out of 5, with weaker integrations than Dify. It suits IT-led companies that need governed agents, and has a free plan and custom Enterprise pricing.
2.5/5
Should you use Dify?
Dify is a solid pick for technical teams, but don't expect it to run on its own. It ranked second of eight with 2.5 out of 5, helped by its integrations score of 3. Yet our agents got only 37 of 60 runs right, and each took around 137 minutes to build.
If you have someone who can host software or work with APIs, the free Community edition or the Professional plan is a fair way to build AI agents with your own documents. If you're a non-technical small business wanting a ready-made support bot, look at Dust or a chat-focused builder instead.
Dify suits technical teams that want an open-source, self-hostable agent builder; non-technical buyers should look elsewhere.
Still deciding?
Compare AI agent builders →
See how Dify compares
Every tool in our AI agent builders test got the same jobs. Our ranking puts the results side by side.
Disagree with our review?
Make your case
If you use Dify, or work there, and think we got something wrong, email us. Tell us what you saw and attach screenshots if you have them. We'll take another look and update the review if it changes our findings.
review.now.team@gmail.com
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Frequently asked questions
How much does Dify cost?
Dify's cloud has a free Sandbox plan. Professional costs $590 a year per workspace, which is $49.17 a month billed yearly, and Team costs $1,590 a year, or $132.50 a month billed yearly. Monthly prices aren't shown. The self-hosted Community edition is free, and Enterprise is priced by custom quote. We checked prices on November 2, 2026.
How did you test Dify?
Over 7 days in October 2026 we built three agents in Dify: one for support questions, one to qualify leads and one to look up data. We timed each build from sign-up, ran each agent 20 times with the same inputs, checked how failures were flagged or handed to a person, and counted how many connections worked without code.
Is Dify free?
Yes, in two ways. The Community edition is free to host yourself, with the core features and one workspace. In the cloud, the Sandbox plan is free but gives only 200 message credits in total, 5 apps and 1 member. There is no separate free trial of the paid plans.
Is Dify open source?
Yes. Dify is released under the Dify Open Source License, which is based on Apache 2.0 but adds extra conditions. If you plan to build a product on top of Dify or offer it to clients, read those conditions first, as they are not the same as a plain Apache 2.0 licence.
Is Dify safe?
Dify reports SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001:2022 audits and GDPR compliance, with a data processing agreement on every plan. HIPAA support isn't confirmed. If you host it yourself, the cloud certifications don't carry over, so keeping it updated and limiting access becomes your job.
How do I cancel Dify?
Go to Settings, then Billing, and click Manage. That opens the payment portal, where you can cancel. Your workspace keeps its paid plan until the end of the period you've paid for, then moves back to the free Sandbox plan. Dify's docs don't cover refunds, so ask support if you need one.
Written by
Liam Foster
If there's a strange new AI tool making its way around the internet, I've probably already bookmarked it. My favorite part is figuring out what these platforms can actually do.