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Cloud · head to head

Anyscale vs Thanos

Anyscale logo

Anyscale

Cloud

Platform for scaling AI and data workloads on Ray, built by Ray's creators

From
Free
Rated
-
Thanos logo

Thanos

Cloud

Highly available Prometheus with long-term object storage

From
Free
Rated
-

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Anyscale pricing for high-end H100/B200-class GPUs is not published and requires contacting sales.; Thanos several components — sidecar, store, querier, compactor, ruler — each with its own configuration and failure modes
  • They diverge on capability: Anyscale covers Distributed model training, Thanos covers Global query.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Anyscale and Thanos actually diverge.

Attributes where Anyscale and Thanos differ
AttributeAnyscaleThanos
Pricing modelusage-basedOpen source, no licence fee
Platformsweb, apiKubernetes, Linux, Docker

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cloud).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Anyscale

  • Distributed model training
  • Multimodal data curation
  • Batch embedding generation
  • Multi-cloud orchestration
  • Governance and security
  • Observability
  • Bring-your-own-cloud deployment
  • Elastic GPU allocation

Only in Thanos

  • Global query
  • Object storage retention
  • Deduplication
  • Downsampling

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Anyscale

  • Training large models on distributed GPU clustersnot Thanos
  • Running batch inference and embedding jobsnot Thanos
  • Preparing multimodal datasets at scalenot Thanos
  • Post-training LLMs with reinforcement learning frameworksnot Thanos

Thanos

  • Querying metrics across many clusters or regions from one placenot Anyscale
  • Retaining metrics for years without local disk growthnot Anyscale
  • Removing the gap that appears when a single Prometheus instance restartsnot Anyscale

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Anyscale

  • Pricing for high-end H100/B200-class GPUs is not published and requires contacting sales.
  • Built around Ray, so teams not already using Ray face a steeper adoption curve than single-purpose inference APIs.
  • No published fixed-fee subscription tier; all listed pricing is usage-based on-demand compute.

Thanos

  • Several components — sidecar, store, querier, compactor, ruler — each with its own configuration and failure modes
  • The compactor is a common source of operational trouble and must not run twice against the same bucket
  • Query latency over object storage is meaningfully higher than local Prometheus
  • Object storage costs and API request charges become real at high volume

Pricing, plan by plan

Anyscale

Free
  • Pay-as-you-go$undefined/mo
    • CPU only from $0.0135/hr
    • NVIDIA T4 $0.5682/hr
    • NVIDIA L4 $0.9542/hr
  • Committed contract$undefined/mo
    • Volume discounts
    • Use of existing GPU reservations

Thanos

Free
  • ThanosFree
    • Full functionality
    • No usage limits
    • Community support

Which should you pick?

Choose Anyscale if

  • You need distributed model training.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, api.
  • You also want multimodal data curation.

Choose Thanos if

  • You need global query.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Kubernetes, Linux, Docker.
  • You also want object storage retention.

Questions people ask

Is Anyscale or Thanos better?
Neither clearly leads. Anyscale starts at Free and Thanos at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Anyscale or Thanos?
Anyscale starts at Free and Thanos at Free.
Does Anyscale or Thanos run on more platforms?
Anyscale runs on web, api. Thanos runs on Kubernetes, Linux, Docker.
Can I use Anyscale for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Anyscale best used for?
Anyscale is most often used for training large models on distributed gpu clusters, running batch inference and embedding jobs, preparing multimodal datasets at scale, post-training llms with reinforcement learning frameworks. Of those, training large models on distributed gpu clusters and running batch inference and embedding jobs are not what Thanos is typically brought in for.
What can Anyscale do that Thanos cannot?
Anyscale covers Distributed model training, Multimodal data curation, Batch embedding generation, Multi-cloud orchestration. Thanos covers Global query, Object storage retention, Deduplication, Downsampling.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Anyscale: How much does Anyscale cost?

Anyscale bills on a pay-as-you-go basis: CPU compute starts at $0.0135/hr, NVIDIA T4 at $0.5682/hr, and NVIDIA A100 at $4.9591/hr, with committed contracts offering volume discounts for larger workloads.

Source
Thanos: Is Thanos free?

Yes, open source and CNCF-incubating. Costs are the object storage it uses.

Anyscale: Is there a free trial or credit?

New users receive $100 in Anyscale credits to explore the platform, which can be applied toward starter templates and on-demand compute usage.

Source
Thanos: Does Thanos replace Prometheus?

No. It runs alongside existing Prometheus servers, adding global query, deduplication and long-term storage.

Anyscale: How is usage billed?

Hosted usage is billed hourly per compute instance type and invoiced monthly by credit card; bring-your-own-cloud usage is invoiced through Anyscale or the customer's cloud marketplace account.

Source
Thanos: Thanos or VictoriaMetrics?

Thanos layers onto Prometheus using object storage and is the more established multi-cluster answer. VictoriaMetrics is a separate store aiming at lower resource use and fewer moving parts.

Anyscale: What support is included?

Hosted plans include business-hours support with up to 5 case submissions, while bring-your-own-cloud deployments get 24x7 enterprise SLAs and unlimited case submissions.

Source
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