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Prefect

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Last updated on

Company health

Employee growth
18% increase in the last year
Web traffic
15% decrease in the last quarter
Financing
November 2023 - $60M

Ratings

G2
4.5/5
(123)
Glassdoor
3.9/5
(36)

Prefect description

Prefect helps you automate tasks, especially those involving data. It's like a to-do list for your computer programs, making sure they run on time and without issues. It's built for data professionals but uses simple Python code, so it's easy to understand and use. Prefect monitors your tasks, alerting you to problems and offering quick recovery. You can test locally and then easily deploy to your preferred environment, having full control over where your code runs.


Who is Prefect best for

Prefect is a powerful automation tool designed for data professionals, particularly data engineers and machine learning engineers. Users praise its ease of use for Python users, flexibility, and excellent SDK. However, some find the documentation challenging and the UI overwhelming. Prefect excels at local testing and deployment to various environments, making it ideal for streamlining data pipelines and automating complex workflows.

  • Ideal for small to medium-sized businesses, especially those with data-intensive operations.

  • A good fit for data-driven industries seeking to streamline and automate their data processes.


Prefect features

Supported

Prefect supports staging environments through separate workspaces and environment promotion.

Supported

Prefect offers customizable infrastructure through blocks, enabling granular control down to the individual flow.

Supported

Prefect streamlines workflows by automating tasks, handling errors, and enabling flexible execution.

Supported

Prefect supports conditional logic using native Python if/else statements within flows.

Supported

Prefect supports automatic retries of failed tasks to improve workflow resilience.

Qualities

We evaluate the sentiment that users express about non-functional aspects of the software

Value and Pricing Transparency

Rather positive
+0.33

Customer Service

Strongly positive
+1

Ease of Use

Strongly positive
+0.73

Reliability and Performance

Strongly positive
+0.82

Ease of Implementation

Rather positive
+0.4

Scalability

Strongly positive
+1

Prefect reviews

We've summarised 123 Prefect reviews (Prefect G2 reviews) and summarised the main points below.

Pros of Prefect
  • Easy to use and set up, especially for Python users.
  • Flexible and customizable for various workflows and deployments.
  • Excellent Python SDK and decorator-based approach.
  • Great for local testing and deployment to various environments.
  • Active and helpful community and support team.
Cons of Prefect
  • Difficult documentation, especially for deployments and integrations.
  • Steep learning curve for complex features and setups.
  • Rapid updates and potential breaking changes can be challenging to keep up with.
  • Limited integrations with some tools and platforms.
  • UI can be overwhelming, especially for new users, and lacks some desired features like DAG visualization.

Prefect pricing

The commentary is based on 13 reviews from Prefect G2 reviews.

Prefect offers per-seat pricing, allowing for predictable scaling without unexpected costs.

Users sentiment

Strongly positive
+1

See the Prefect pricing page.

  • Prefect has a free plan.

Free
Free

Essential Prefect features. No credit card required. 5 deployed workflows. Rate limit: 5,000 runs/day.

Pro
Custom

Up to 20 users. SSO (SAML/OIDC). Extended data & log retention. 9x5 support available. Unlimited deployments.

Enterprise
Custom

Granular permissions & RBAC. Directory Sync (SCIM). IP allowlisting & PrivateLink available. 24x7 support available.


Prefect alternatives

  • Logo of kestra
    kestra
    Orchestrates data pipelines visually, reliably, and at scale.
    Read more
  • Logo of Azure Batch
    Azure Batch
    Cloud-scale parallel computing, automated and cost-effective.
    Read more
  • Logo of Astro by Astronomer
    Astro by Astronomer
    Easily build, run, and observe data pipelines with Apache Airflow.
    Read more
  • Logo of AWS Batch
    AWS Batch
    Effortlessly run big computing jobs in the cloud, no servers needed.
    Read more
  • Logo of Amazon Simple Workflow Service (SWF)
    Amazon Simple Workflow Service (SWF)
    Coordinates complex cloud tasks reliably, scaling with your needs.
    Read more
  • Logo of Datacoves
    Datacoves
    Clean, transform, manage, and secure your company data with ease.
    Read more

Prefect FAQ

  • What is Prefect and what does Prefect do?

    Prefect is a dataflow automation platform for data engineers and scientists. Using Python, it orchestrates and monitors data workflows, ensuring reliable execution. Prefect simplifies complex data pipelines with easy deployment and recovery, offering a flexible solution for diverse data tasks.

  • How does Prefect integrate with other tools?

    Prefect integrates with various tools through its flexible Python SDK and utilizes a decorator-based approach. While it boasts a supportive community and an active team, users have noted some difficulties with documentation around integrations. More specific details on individual integrations are limited.

  • What the main competitors of Prefect?

    Top Prefect competitors include Apache Airflow, Dagster, and Flyte. These alternatives offer similar workflow orchestration and data pipeline management capabilities for data professionals. While Prefect excels in its Python-centric approach, these competitors offer diverse features and integrations.

  • Is Prefect legit?

    Yes, Prefect is a legitimate and safe data automation platform. It's praised for ease of use and flexible workflows. However, users note documentation can be challenging and the UI overwhelming. It's best suited for Python-savvy data professionals.

  • How much does Prefect cost?

    Prefect offers a Free plan with essential features and a 5,000 runs/day limit. Pro and Enterprise plans offer additional features and support with custom pricing based on your needs. Contact Prefect for a quote to determine if it's worth the cost for your product requirements.

  • Is Prefect customer service good?

    Prefect's customer service receives positive feedback. Users highlight the helpful and responsive support team on Slack and the valuable assistance from the Prefect community. The availability of support through various channels helps users overcome challenges and quickly resolve issues.


Reviewed by

MK
Michal Kaczor
CEO at Gralio

Michal has worked at startups for many years and writes about topics relating to software selection and IT management. As a former consultant for Bain, a business advisory company, he also knows how to understand needs of any business and find solutions to its problems.

TT
Tymon Terlikiewicz
CTO at Gralio

Tymon is a seasoned CTO who loves finding the perfect tools for any task. He recently headed up the tech department at Batmaid, a well-known Swiss company, where he managed about 60 software purchases, including CX, HR, Payroll, Marketing automation and various developer tools.

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