Temporal is an open-source durable execution platform that lets developers write workflows as ordinary code that keeps running reliably through crashes, outages and timeouts.
Temporal records each step of a workflow, so if a server or network fails, the workflow resumes exactly where it left off. This removes much of the retry logic, queues and state machines that distributed systems usually need, and it is increasingly used to run long-running AI agents reliably.
Key features
- Workflows written in Go, Java, TypeScript, Python, .NET, PHP or Ruby
- Automatic retries, timeouts and state persistence
- Long-running workflows that can last days or months
- Signals, queries and updates for interacting with running workflows
- Visibility UI for inspecting and debugging executions
- Self-hosted open-source server or managed Temporal Cloud
- SSO via SAML, API keys and service accounts on Temporal Cloud
Who it's for
Temporal is for backend engineers building payment flows, order processing, data pipelines, infrastructure automation and AI agents where reliability matters.
Common use cases
- Orchestrating payment and order processing
- Running reliable AI agent loops
- Coordinating microservices and sagas
- Automating infrastructure provisioning
Pricing
The Temporal server is open source and free to self-host. Temporal Cloud is pay-as-you-go with no base monthly fee: pricing starts at $50 per million actions (falling to $25 per million with volume), active storage is $0.042 per GB-hour, and new accounts get $150 in free credits for 90 days. Business support starts at $500 per month.
Alternatives
- Inngest: event-driven durable functions
- Trigger.dev: background jobs and workflows for TypeScript
- Dapr: microservices runtime with workflow building blocks
FAQ
Is Temporal free?
Yes. Temporal is open source and free to self-host; Temporal Cloud is pay-as-you-go with $150 in starter credits.
What is Temporal used for?
Temporal is used to build reliable workflows such as payments, order processing, data pipelines and AI agents that survive failures.
What is durable execution?
Durable execution means a program's state is persisted so it can resume exactly where it left off after a crash or outage.
Temporal vs Inngest: which should I choose?
Temporal is a powerful general-purpose workflow engine with many language SDKs, while Inngest offers an event-driven, serverless-friendly approach popular with TypeScript teams.
How much does Temporal Cloud cost?
Temporal Cloud starts at $50 per million actions plus storage, with no base monthly fee.
Which languages does Temporal support?
Temporal has SDKs for Go, Java, TypeScript, Python, .NET, PHP and Ruby.