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Research · head to head

Attest vs Terra

Attest logo

Attest

Research

Straightforward pricing for predictable research costs

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Terra logo

Terra

Research

Open biomedical research platform for genomic analysis, priced only by the cloud you consume

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Terra has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Attest pricing is metered by credits, where one credit equals one survey question answered by one person, rather than a flat per seat rate; Terra the absence of a licence fee hides the real cost driver: an idle notebook virtual machine left running overnight, or a workspace bucket full of intermediate workflow outputs, quietly consumes grant money with no vendor invoice to prompt a review.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Attest and Terra actually diverge.

Attributes where Attest and Terra differ
AttributeAttestTerra
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionOpen source, no licence fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebWeb, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Research).

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 Attest

Nothing recorded that Terra does not also cover.

Only in Terra

  • No platform licence fee
  • Cloud pass-through billing
  • WDL workflow execution
  • Notebook environments
  • Controlled-access data
  • Workspace sharing
  • Compliance posture
  • Multi-cloud

What people use each for

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

Attest

  • Testing product concepts with global audiencesnot Terra
  • Monitoring brand health across campaignsnot Terra
  • Validating creative concepts before launchnot Terra
  • Researching market trends in 70 languagesnot Terra

Terra

  • A genomics lab running whole-genome alignment and variant calling pipelines without provisioning or maintaining a local clusternot Attest
  • A consortium sharing controlled-access human data across institutions where the data cannot be copied to each sitenot Attest
  • A health system analysing patient genomic data under a HIPAA business associate agreementnot Attest
  • A federal or federally funded project needing FedRAMP Moderate authorisation for its analysis environmentnot Attest

Where each one falls short

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

Attest

  • Pricing is metered by credits, where one credit equals one survey question answered by one person, rather than a flat per seat rate
  • The Basic tier caps usage at 50,000 credits; going beyond it requires upgrading to Standard (100,000), Elite (200,000) or a custom plan above 400,000
  • Additional credits purchased mid year cost 10 percent more per credit than the plan rate

Terra

  • The absence of a licence fee hides the real cost driver: an idle notebook virtual machine left running overnight, or a workspace bucket full of intermediate workflow outputs, quietly consumes grant money with no vendor invoice to prompt a review.
  • Cost governance is entirely the customer responsibility, and grant-funded groups without a cloud engineer routinely overspend before anyone reads the Google or Azure bill in enough detail to find the cause.
  • It assumes genuine bioinformatics competence: writing or adapting WDL workflows, managing data tables and debugging failed tasks are all on you, so a wet lab without computational staff cannot use it productively.
  • Feature parity between the Google Cloud and Azure deployments is not identical, so a decision on cloud provider constrains which capabilities and datasets you can reach and is expensive to reverse later.
  • It is a research platform rather than a regulated clinical system: it is not a validated GxP environment and does not carry the qualification package a diagnostic or submission workflow would require, so clinical use needs additional infrastructure and validation you provide yourself.

Pricing, plan by plan

Attest

On request
  • Basic$undefined/mo
    • Up to 50,000 credits
  • Standard$undefined/mo
    • Up to 100,000 credits
  • Elite$undefined/mo
    • Up to 200,000 credits
  • Custom$undefined/mo
    • Over 400,000+ credits

Terra

Free
  • Terra platformFree
    • No charge for the platform, administration, security controls or frontline support
    • Workspaces, workflow execution and notebook environments included
    • Available on Google Cloud and Microsoft Azure
  • Cloud consumption$undefined/month
    • Google Cloud or Azure charges passed through at cost with no markup
    • Running notebook virtual machines around 0.22 USD per hour, roughly 0.027 USD per hour when paused
    • Storage billed continuously on workspace buckets and intermediate workflow outputs

Which should you pick?

Choose Attest if

Nothing in the data separates Attest from Terra on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.

Attest review

Choose Terra if

  • You need no platform licence fee.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure.
  • You also want cloud pass-through billing.
Terra review

Questions people ask

Is Attest or Terra better?
Neither clearly leads. Attest starts at On request and Terra at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Attest or Terra?
Terra has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Attest and Free for Terra.
Does Attest or Terra run on more platforms?
Attest runs on Web. Terra runs on Web, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure.
Can I use Terra for free?
Yes. Terra has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Attest starts at On request.
What is Attest best used for?
Attest is most often used for testing product concepts with global audiences, monitoring brand health across campaigns, validating creative concepts before launch, researching market trends in 70 languages. Of those, testing product concepts with global audiences and monitoring brand health across campaigns are not what Terra is typically brought in for.
What can Attest do that Terra cannot?
Terra covers No platform licence fee, Cloud pass-through billing, WDL workflow execution, Notebook environments.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Attest: How does Attest's credit system work?

Attest uses a credit-based pricing system where one credit equals one survey answer from one respondent. For example, a 10-question survey completed by 500 people uses 5,000 credits. Only respondents who meet survey criteria consume credits from the qualifying question.

Source
Terra: Is Terra really free?

The platform is. There is no licence fee. Everything you pay is Google Cloud or Azure compute, storage and egress, passed through at cost.

Attest: What plans does Attest offer?

Attest offers four subscription plans: Basic (up to 50,000 credits), Standard (up to 100,000 credits), Elite (up to 200,000 credits), and Custom (over 400,000+ credits). All plans include unlimited user seats, designated research expert, customer success team support, and access to 150+ million consumers across 59 countries in 70+ languages.

Source
Terra: What actually drives the bill?

Running virtual machines and stored data. Pausing notebooks drops a virtual machine from about 0.22 to about 0.027 dollars an hour, and deleting intermediate workflow outputs is the other main saving.

Attest: Can I purchase additional credits on Attest?

Yes. Additional credits are available as add-ons throughout the year. Add-on credits cost 10% more than the per-credit rate in annual plans.

Source
Terra: Can I use it with protected health information?

Yes. Terra signs HIPAA business associate agreements and GDPR data processing agreements, and the Azure deployment holds FedRAMP Moderate authorisation.

Terra: Is it validated for clinical or GxP use?

No. It is a research platform. Regulated clinical or submission workflows need validation and controls you build yourself.

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