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Software · head to head

Baremetrics vs PlanetScale

Baremetrics logo

Baremetrics

Software

Subscription analytics for SaaS

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
PlanetScale logo

PlanetScale

Software

The MySQL-compatible serverless database

From
$15/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Baremetrics has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Baremetrics priced on the revenue it measures, so the bill rises with your ARR rather than with usage: $75 a month up to $360K ARR, $255 to $3.6M and $1,152 above that; PlanetScale eBS High Availability requires 3-node configuration with replication overhead
  • They diverge on capability: Baremetrics covers Revenue Metrics, PlanetScale covers Database Branching.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Baremetrics and PlanetScale actually diverge.

Attributes where Baremetrics and PlanetScale differ
AttributeBaremetricsPlanetScale
Starting priceFree$15/month
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, ApiCloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure)
Founded20132018

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

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 Baremetrics

  • Revenue Metrics
  • Forecasting
  • Benchmarking
  • Cancellation Insights
  • Email Reports
  • Stripe
  • Braintree
  • Recurly

Only in PlanetScale

  • Database Branching
  • Non-blocking Schema Changes
  • Insights
  • Horizontal Scaling
  • Connection Pooling
  • Query Caching
  • Automatic Backups
  • Global Replication

Both cover

  • Web support

What people use each for

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

Baremetrics

  • Subscription metrics and MRR reporting from Stripe and similar billing systemsnot PlanetScale
  • Churn and retention analysisnot PlanetScale
  • Failed payment recovery through the add-onnot PlanetScale
  • Cancellation surveys to understand why customers leavenot PlanetScale

PlanetScale

  • MySQL database hosting with automatic failover and replicationnot Baremetrics
  • Vitess-based sharding for horizontal scaling across large datasetsnot Baremetrics
  • Cloud provider flexibility across AWS, GCP, Azure with 60+ regionsnot Baremetrics
  • Cost-effective database clusters using ARM64 architecture optionsnot Baremetrics

Where each one falls short

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

Baremetrics

  • Priced on the revenue it measures, so the bill rises with your ARR rather than with usage: $75 a month up to $360K ARR, $255 to $3.6M and $1,152 above that
  • Payment Recovery and Cancellation Insights are separate add-ons at $129 a month each
  • The advertised prices assume annual billing with a discount of up to 35 percent
  • There is no free tier, only a trial

PlanetScale

  • EBS High Availability requires 3-node configuration with replication overhead
  • EBS Non-HA single-node option lacks redundancy and automatic failover
  • Pricing varies by cloud provider and region, requiring queries for specific rates
  • ARM64 architecture only available on EBS tier, not Metal deployments

Pricing, plan by plan

Baremetrics

Free
  • Metrics$50/month
    • Revenue Metrics
    • Customer Profiles
    • Slack Integration
  • Recover$50/month
    • Failed Payment Recovery
    • Dunning Management
    • Analytics

PlanetScale

$15/month

No published plan breakdown. See the PlanetScale review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Baremetrics if

  • You need revenue metrics.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want forecasting.
Baremetrics review

Choose PlanetScale if

  • You need database branching.
  • You work on Cloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure).
  • You also want non-blocking schema changes.
PlanetScale review

Questions people ask

Is Baremetrics or PlanetScale better?
Neither clearly leads. Baremetrics starts at Free and PlanetScale at $15/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Baremetrics or PlanetScale?
Baremetrics has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Baremetrics and $15/month for PlanetScale.
Does Baremetrics or PlanetScale run on more platforms?
Baremetrics runs on Web, Api. PlanetScale runs on Cloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure).
Can I use Baremetrics for free?
Yes. Baremetrics has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. PlanetScale starts at $15/month.
What is Baremetrics best used for?
Baremetrics is most often used for subscription metrics and mrr reporting from stripe and similar billing systems, churn and retention analysis, failed payment recovery through the add-on, cancellation surveys to understand why customers leave. Of those, subscription metrics and mrr reporting from stripe and similar billing systems and churn and retention analysis are not what PlanetScale is typically brought in for.
What can Baremetrics do that PlanetScale cannot?
Baremetrics covers Revenue Metrics, Forecasting, Benchmarking, Cancellation Insights. PlanetScale covers Database Branching, Non-blocking Schema Changes, Insights, Horizontal Scaling. Both handle Web support.
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