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Developer Tools · head to head

Atlantis vs Periscope Data

Atlantis logo

Atlantis

Developer Tools

Runs Terraform plan and apply from pull request comments, self-hosted and free

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Visit AtlantisFull review
Periscope Data logo

Periscope Data

Business Intelligence

SQL and Python analytics platform

From
$1000/month
Free plan
No
Visit Periscope DataFull review

The short version

  • Atlantis is free; Periscope Data starts at $1000/mo.
  • Only Atlantis lists pull request plans; only Periscope Data lists SQL Editor.
  • Where Periscope Data falls short: the periscopedata.com domain now redirects to sisense.com, so Periscope Data is no longer sold as a standalone product.
  • Prices and features on this page were last checked on 13 November 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Atlantis and Periscope Data actually diverge.

Attributes where Atlantis and Periscope Data differ
AttributeAtlantisPeriscope Data
Starting priceFree$1000/month
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feeSubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsLinux, Self-hostedWeb
CategoryDeveloper ToolsBusiness Intelligence

Not yet recorded: founded for Atlantis.

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 Atlantis

  • Pull request plans
  • Comment driven apply
  • Workspace locking
  • Policy checking
  • Multi-platform webhooks
  • Custom workflows

Only in Periscope Data

  • SQL Editor
  • Python/R Integration
  • Version Control
  • Caching
  • Dashboards
  • Redshift
  • BigQuery
  • Snowflake

What people use each for

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

Atlantis

  • Making Terraform review meaningful by putting the actual plan output in front of the approvernot Periscope Data
  • Removing local applies and the credential sprawl that comes with every engineer holding production keysnot Periscope Data
  • Getting pull request driven infrastructure without paying a per-user subscription for a hosted platformnot Periscope Data
  • Enforcing Conftest policies as a blocking check before an apply can runnot Periscope Data

Periscope Data

  • SQL-based analytics and dashboards over a data warehousenot Atlantis
  • Python and R analysis alongside SQL in one workflownot Atlantis
  • Shared dashboards for data teamsnot Atlantis

Where each one falls short

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

Atlantis

  • There is no company, no service level agreement and no paid support at any price, and the six maintainers are volunteers with day jobs, which some risk committees will not accept for a component holding production cloud credentials
  • The security surface is inherently sharp, because it is an internet-reachable webhook endpoint that executes applies with privileged credentials, gated by pull request comment authorisation that is coarse next to a real policy engine
  • It is stateful, holding a working directory and lock database on local disk, so high availability and horizontal scaling are awkward and you own upgrades, webhook plumbing, secret rotation and the host itself
  • It lacks the features that distinguish the commercial alternatives, with no native drift detection, no cost estimation, no managed state interface and no policy engine beyond the Conftest integration
  • Terragrunt and monorepo layouts are not first-class, requiring hand-written custom workflows and repository configuration that becomes a growing maintenance burden as the number of repositories increases

Periscope Data

  • The periscopedata.com domain now redirects to sisense.com, so Periscope Data is no longer sold as a standalone product
  • No Periscope Data pricing, plan or seat rate remains published at the original domain
  • Buyers must now purchase through Sisense, whose own pricing is not published as a rate card

Pricing, plan by plan

Atlantis

Free
  • AtlantisFree
    • Apache-2.0, no usage limits and no seat count
    • No commercial edition and no paid support tier
    • Community support through GitHub and the CNCF Slack channel

Periscope Data

$1000/month
  • Team$1,000/mo
    • SQL Analytics
    • Python/R
    • Dashboards
  • EnterpriseFree
    • Advanced Features
    • Custom Integrations
    • Premium Support

Which should you pick?

Choose Atlantis if

  • You need pull request plans.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Self-hosted.
  • You also want comment driven apply.
Atlantis review

Choose Periscope Data if

  • You need sql editor.
  • You also want python/r integration.
Periscope Data review

Questions people ask

Is Atlantis or Periscope Data better?
Neither clearly leads. Atlantis starts at Free and Periscope Data at $1000/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Atlantis or Periscope Data?
Atlantis has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Atlantis and $1000/month for Periscope Data.
Does Atlantis or Periscope Data run on more platforms?
Atlantis runs on Linux, Self-hosted. Periscope Data runs on Web.
Can I use Atlantis for free?
Yes. Atlantis has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Periscope Data starts at $1000/month.
What is Atlantis best used for?
Atlantis is most often used for making terraform review meaningful by putting the actual plan output in front of the approver, removing local applies and the credential sprawl that comes with every engineer holding production keys, getting pull request driven infrastructure without paying a per-user subscription for a hosted platform, enforcing conftest policies as a blocking check before an apply can run. Of those, making terraform review meaningful by putting the actual plan output in front of the approver and removing local applies and the credential sprawl that comes with every engineer holding production keys are not what Periscope Data is typically brought in for.
What can Atlantis do that Periscope Data cannot?
Atlantis covers Pull request plans, Comment driven apply, Workspace locking, Policy checking. Periscope Data covers SQL Editor, Python/R Integration, Version Control, Caching.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Atlantis: Is there a company behind Atlantis?

No. It runs as a series of LF Projects under the Linux Foundation and is maintained by volunteers. There is no vendor to buy support from and no service level agreement.

Periscope Data: Does Sisense offer a free trial?

Yes. Sisense offers a free trial of their Self-Serve plan. You can try features like data warehouse connectivity, built-in AI for natural-language queries, auto-narratives, and customer assistant features.

Source
Atlantis: Is it a CNCF project?

No. It uses a channel in the CNCF Slack, which is often misread as membership, but the project sits under LF Projects rather than the CNCF.

Periscope Data: What is the difference between Sisense Self-Serve and Enterprise plans?

The Self-Serve plan is for startups and teams and includes basic connectivity and AI features with iframe embedding. The Enterprise plan is for regulated industries and includes multi-tenant architecture, HIPAA readiness, column-level security, single sign-on, on-premise deployment options, 99.99% SLA, and 30-day backups.

Source
Atlantis: Does it work with OpenTofu?

Yes, there is a dedicated integration guide alongside Terraform, and it also has configuration for working with hosted Terraform backends.

Periscope Data: How do I access the Sisense Enterprise plan?

The Enterprise plan requires contacting Sisense for a demo and custom quote. There is no self-service signup for this tier.

Source
Atlantis: What does it not do that a paid platform does?

Drift detection, cost estimation, a managed state and run interface, and a real policy engine. Atlantis does pull request plan and apply well and stops there.

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