Microsoft Agent Framework vs AutoGen · Successor vs maintenance mode

Microsoft Agent Framework vs AutoGen

Last reviewed: September 2026Workflow frameworkMaintenance mode

Quick answer

Microsoft Agent Framework is the direct successor to AutoGen, built by the same team, generally available and actively released. AutoGen is in maintenance mode with no new features. Start new projects on Agent Framework, and migrate existing AutoGen code using Microsoft's migration guide when it suits your roadmap.

Best for all new projectsExisting code only

This is less a comparison than a migration decision. AutoGen's repository says it is in maintenance mode, community managed, and that new users should start with Microsoft Agent Framework. Agent Framework (MAF) is generally available with python-1.17.0 released on September 3, 2026 and dotnet-1.20.0 on August 31, 2026.

Microsoft's migration guide is unusually direct about the differences, and they are worth knowing before you estimate the work.

How do Microsoft Agent Framework and AutoGen compare on specs?

Spec	Microsoft Agent Framework	AutoGen
Status	GA, active releases	Maintenance mode, community managed
Orchestration style	Typed, graph-based Workflow; data-flow routing along edges	Event-driven core with high-level Team; control-flow, messages broadcast to all agents
Built-in patterns	Sequential, Concurrent, Handoff, Group Chat, Magentic	Two-agent chat, group chat teams
Agent default	Multi-turn, keeps invoking tools until it can answer	AssistantAgent single-turn unless max_tool_iterations is raised
State	Stateless agent with explicit AgentSession	Agent keeps conversation history in its state
Checkpointing	Built in (executor state, shared state, message queues, position)	Not built in
Human input	ctx.request_info() with response handlers	Team runs continuously; no built-in pause
MCP	Stdio, streamable HTTP and WebSocket tools	Basic, through extensions
Hosted tools	Code interpreter, web search	Not available
Languages	Python, .NET (GA); Go (preview)	Python (primary), .NET
License	MIT	MIT (code), CC-BY-4.0 (docs)

How do Microsoft Agent Framework and AutoGen coordinate agents?

The biggest change is the orchestration model. AutoGen teams pass control from agent to agent and broadcast messages to everyone in the team. MAF workflows route data along specific edges and activate executors when their inputs are ready, which allows concurrency and targeted routing. AutoGen's group chat has a close equivalent in MAF's Group Chat orchestration, and Magentic covers manager-led coordination.

The practical wins are checkpointing and human input. MAF can save a workflow's position and pending messages and resume later, and any executor can request information from a person. In AutoGen both had to be built outside the framework.

Agent Framework workflow

Data flows along edges; state can be checkpointed.

AutoGen team

Messages broadcast to the whole team.

When should you choose Microsoft Agent Framework, and when AutoGen?

Choose Agent Framework if

You are starting anything new on Microsoft's stack.
You need checkpointing, human input and OpenTelemetry.
You want .NET and Python with long-term support.
You plan to host on Microsoft Foundry.

Stay on AutoGen for now if

A working AutoGen system has no near-term feature needs.
You have scheduled, not skipped, a migration to Agent Framework.

Can you use Microsoft Agent Framework and AutoGen together?

During a migration you will likely run both for a while. If agents from the old AutoGen system, the new MAF workflows and other frameworks need to cooperate in the meantime, BAND connects agents across frameworks in shared rooms with people involved. Neither AutoGen nor MAF is named on BAND's integrations page; BAND lists Azure AI Foundry and Copilot Studio, and supports A2A, MCP and a Python SDK. Confirm the route in BAND's docs.

How much do Microsoft Agent Framework and AutoGen cost?

Plan	Price	What you get
Microsoft Agent Framework	Free	MIT; Foundry and model usage billed by Azure
AutoGen	Free	MIT; community maintained

Prices from vendor pages, September 2026

What else do people ask about Microsoft Agent Framework vs AutoGen?

Should I migrate from AutoGen to Microsoft Agent Framework?

For new features, support and checkpointing, yes. Microsoft publishes a migration guide mapping AutoGen concepts to Agent Framework.

Is Semantic Kernel also replaced?

Microsoft describes Agent Framework as the direct successor to both AutoGen and Semantic Kernel and provides migration guides for each.

Does AutoGen still work?

Yes. It is community managed and will not receive new features or enhancements.

What is Magentic?

An Agent Framework orchestration in which a manager agent dynamically coordinates specialised agents.

Where do these facts come from?

Reviewed Sep 2026

Which comparisons should you read next?

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For a new project, choose CrewAI or AutoGen's successor, Microsoft Agent Framework. AutoGen gets no new features.

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Need both? See how BAND connects them Read the BAND comparison