Inngest vs Trigger.dev
Comparing Inngest and Trigger.dev - workflow orchestration, background jobs, and event-driven architectures
Inngest vs Trigger.dev
A comparison of two popular TypeScript-first workflow orchestration and background job platforms for modern applications.
Overview
| Feature | Inngest | Trigger.dev |
|---|---|---|
| Initial Release | 2021 (~5 years) | 2023 (~3 years) |
| Core Philosophy | Event-driven workflows | Background jobs & tasks |
| Architecture | HTTP webhook-based | Checkpoint-resume system |
| Primary Language | TypeScript, Python, Go | TypeScript |
| Runtime | Serverless-first | Long-running tasks |
| Open Source | Yes (SSPL / Apache 2.0 DOSP) | Yes (fully open source) |
| Self-Hosting | Yes (single-node) | Yes |
Core Concepts
Inngest
Inngest is built on a purely event-driven model. Everything is triggered by an event, removing the need for developers to manage queues or worker processes.
import { Inngest } from "inngest";
const inngest = new Inngest({ id: "my-app" });
// Define a function triggered by an event
export const processOrder = inngest.createFunction(
{ id: "process-order" },
{ event: "order/created" },
async ({ event, step }) => {
// Step 1: Validate order
const validated = await step.run("validate-order", async () => {
return validateOrder(event.data.orderId);
});
// Step 2: Process payment
const payment = await step.run("process-payment", async () => {
return processPayment(validated.orderId, validated.amount);
});
// Step 3: Send confirmation
await step.run("send-confirmation", async () => {
return sendEmail(event.data.email, payment.receiptUrl);
});
}
);
// Send an event to trigger the function
await inngest.send({
name: "order/created",
data: { orderId: "123", email: "user@example.com" }
});Trigger.dev
Trigger.dev focuses on background tasks with a checkpoint-resume system that enables long-running operations without timeouts.
import { task } from "@trigger.dev/sdk/v3";
// Define a task
export const processOrder = task({
id: "process-order",
retry: {
maxAttempts: 3,
minTimeoutInMs: 1000,
maxTimeoutInMs: 10000,
},
run: async (payload: { orderId: string; email: string }) => {
// Validate order
const validated = await validateOrder(payload.orderId);
// Process payment
const payment = await processPayment(validated.orderId, validated.amount);
// Send confirmation
await sendEmail(payload.email, payment.receiptUrl);
return { success: true, paymentId: payment.id };
},
});
// Trigger the task
await processOrder.trigger({
orderId: "123",
email: "user@example.com"
});Architecture Comparison
| Aspect | Inngest | Trigger.dev |
|---|---|---|
| Execution Model | Event → Function → Steps | Task → Run → Subtasks |
| State Management | Step results saved by platform | Checkpoint-resume system |
| Retry Mechanism | Per-step retries | Per-task retries |
| Fan-out Pattern | Native (multiple functions per event) | Via batch triggering |
| Connection Type | HTTP webhooks | gRPC + HTTP |
Durability Model
Inngest: Each step within a function is a durable, transactional unit. When retrying, completed steps are skipped and their results retrieved from saved state.
Trigger.dev: Uses a checkpoint-restore system that periodically saves task state, allowing seamless resume after failures or serverless timeouts.
Feature Comparison
Flow Control
| Feature | Inngest | Trigger.dev |
|---|---|---|
| Concurrency Limits | ✅ Built-in | ✅ Built-in |
| Rate Limiting | ✅ Built-in | ✅ Built-in |
| Debouncing | ✅ Built-in | ❌ Manual |
| Prioritization | ✅ Built-in | ✅ Via queues |
| Idempotency | ✅ Built-in | ✅ Via idempotency keys |
| Scheduling (Cron) | ✅ Built-in | ✅ Built-in |
Developer Experience
| Feature | Inngest | Trigger.dev |
|---|---|---|
| Local Dev Server | ✅ Inngest Dev Server | ✅ Dev CLI |
| Dashboard | ✅ Web UI | ✅ Web UI |
| Real-time Monitoring | ✅ | ✅ Realtime API |
| TypeScript Support | ✅ First-class | ✅ First-class |
| React Hooks | ❌ | ✅ @trigger.dev/react |
| LLM Streaming | ❌ | ✅ Built-in |
Integrations
| Feature | Inngest | Trigger.dev |
|---|---|---|
| Vercel | ✅ Marketplace | ✅ Preview branches |
| Next.js | ✅ Native | ✅ Native |
| AWS Lambda | ✅ Optimized | ✅ Supported |
| Cloudflare Workers | ✅ Supported | ⚠️ Limited |
| Datadog | ✅ Enterprise | ❌ |
Pricing Comparison
Inngest Pricing
| Plan | Price | Steps Included | Concurrency | History |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0/mo | 50,000 | 25 | 3 days |
| Team | $50/mo | 100,000 (+$1/10K) | 100 | 7 days |
| Startup | $350/mo | 5,000,000 (+$5/200K) | 500 | 14 days |
| Enterprise | Custom | Custom | Custom | 90 days |
Trigger.dev Pricing
| Plan | Price | Usage Included | Concurrency | Retention |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0/mo | $5 | 20 prod / 25 dev | 1 day |
| Hobby | $10/mo | $10 | 25 | 7 days |
| Pro | $50/mo | $50 | 100+ | 30 days |
| Enterprise | Custom | Custom | Custom | Custom |
Note: Trigger.dev charges per compute time + invocation, while Inngest charges per step execution.
Self-Hosting
Inngest
- Single-node deployment with single command
- Uses SQLite by default, Postgres supported
- Licensed under SSPL with Apache 2.0 DOSP
# Run self-hosted Inngest
docker run -p 8288:8288 inngest/inngestTrigger.dev
- Fully open source
- Docker Compose or Kubernetes deployment
- More complex setup but full feature parity
# Clone and run with Docker Compose
git clone https://github.com/triggerdotdev/trigger.dev
docker compose upPerformance Characteristics
| Aspect | Inngest | Trigger.dev |
|---|---|---|
| Cold Start | Minimal (HTTP-based) | Optimized (Dec 2025 update) |
| Max Execution Time | Unlimited (step-based) | Unlimited (checkpoint-based) |
| Resource Configuration | Platform-managed | Configurable (vCPU, RAM) |
| Serverless Friendly | ✅ Designed for | ✅ Via checkpointing |
Use Cases
Choose Inngest When
- Building event-driven architectures with complex event chains
- Need fan-out patterns (one event → multiple functions)
- Deploying to serverless platforms (Vercel, AWS Lambda)
- Want simpler mental model without managing workers
- Building multi-language systems (TypeScript, Python, Go)
- Need built-in flow control (debouncing, rate limiting)
Choose Trigger.dev When
- Building long-running background jobs (video processing, AI tasks)
- Need fine-grained resource control (CPU, memory configuration)
- Want real-time updates in frontend (React hooks, Realtime API)
- Building AI/LLM workflows with streaming support
- Prefer fully open source licensing
- Need human-in-the-loop workflows (waitpoints)
Code Comparison: Fan-out Pattern
One of the key architectural differences is how each platform handles fan-out (one event triggering multiple independent operations).
Inngest
Inngest natively supports fan-out through its event-driven model. Multiple functions can subscribe to the same event, and they execute independently when that event is sent.
// Send an event - the producer doesn't need to know who consumes it
await inngest.send({
name: "order/placed",
data: { orderId: "123", amount: 500 }
})
// Multiple functions can listen to the same event (fan-out)
inngest.createFunction(
{ id: "send-confirmation" },
{ event: "order/placed" },
async ({ event }) => { /* Send confirmation email */ }
)
inngest.createFunction(
{ id: "update-inventory" },
{ event: "order/placed" },
async ({ event }) => { /* Update inventory */ }
)
inngest.createFunction(
{ id: "notify-warehouse" },
{ event: "order/placed" },
async ({ event }) => { /* Notify warehouse */ }
)Trigger.dev
Trigger.dev requires explicit orchestration for fan-out patterns. You define individual tasks and manually trigger them in parallel.
// Define individual tasks
export const sendConfirmation = task({
id: "send-confirmation",
run: async ({ orderId, amount }) => { /* Send confirmation email */ }
})
export const updateInventory = task({
id: "update-inventory",
run: async ({ orderId, amount }) => { /* Update inventory */ }
})
export const notifyWarehouse = task({
id: "notify-warehouse",
run: async ({ orderId, amount }) => { /* Notify warehouse */ }
})
// Manual parallel triggering required
async function onOrderPlaced(orderId: string, amount: number) {
await Promise.all([
sendConfirmation.trigger({ orderId, amount }),
updateInventory.trigger({ orderId, amount }),
notifyWarehouse.trigger({ orderId, amount }),
])
}Key Difference: Inngest decouples producers from consumers - the event sender doesn't know or care which functions will handle the event. In Trigger.dev, the caller must explicitly know and trigger each task, creating tighter coupling.
Code Comparison: Scheduled Tasks
Inngest
export const dailyReport = inngest.createFunction(
{ id: "daily-report" },
{ cron: "0 9 * * *" }, // Every day at 9 AM
async ({ step }) => {
const data = await step.run("fetch-data", async () => {
return fetchAnalyticsData();
});
await step.run("generate-report", async () => {
return generateReport(data);
});
await step.run("send-email", async () => {
return sendReportEmail(data);
});
}
);Trigger.dev
export const dailyReport = schedules.task({
id: "daily-report",
cron: "0 9 * * *", // Every day at 9 AM
run: async () => {
const data = await fetchAnalyticsData();
const report = await generateReport(data);
await sendReportEmail(report);
return { success: true };
},
});Code Comparison: Retry & Error Handling
Inngest
export const riskyOperation = inngest.createFunction(
{
id: "risky-operation",
retries: 5,
},
{ event: "operation/start" },
async ({ event, step }) => {
// Each step has its own retry logic
const result = await step.run("api-call", async () => {
return callExternalAPI(event.data.id);
});
// Sleep between operations
await step.sleep("wait-for-processing", "30s");
await step.run("verify-result", async () => {
return verifyAPIResult(result.id);
});
}
);Trigger.dev
export const riskyOperation = task({
id: "risky-operation",
retry: {
maxAttempts: 5,
factor: 2,
minTimeoutInMs: 1000,
maxTimeoutInMs: 30000,
},
run: async (payload: { id: string }) => {
const result = await callExternalAPI(payload.id);
// Wait between operations
await wait.for({ seconds: 30 });
await verifyAPIResult(result.id);
return { success: true };
},
});Summary
| Best For | Platform |
|---|---|
| Event-Driven Architecture | Inngest |
| Long-Running Tasks | Trigger.dev |
| Serverless Deployment | Inngest |
| AI/LLM Workflows | Trigger.dev |
| Multi-Language Support | Inngest |
| Real-time Frontend Updates | Trigger.dev |
| Flow Control (Rate Limit, Debounce) | Inngest |
| Resource Configuration | Trigger.dev |
| Self-Hosting Simplicity | Inngest |
| Open Source Licensing | Trigger.dev |
Both platforms excel at making workflow orchestration accessible to TypeScript developers. Inngest leans toward pure event-driven, serverless architectures with built-in flow control, while Trigger.dev focuses on long-running background jobs with excellent developer experience and AI workflow support.
Sources: Inngest Documentation, Trigger.dev Documentation, TypeScript Orchestration Guide, OpenAlternative Comparison