Development Tools · head to head
Buildkite vs Harness
Buildkite
Development Tools
CI/CD pipelines that run on your own compute
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Harness
Development Tools
Software delivery platform across CI, CD, security testing and cost management
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Buildkite has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Buildkite free plan caps at 5 users and 10 concurrent jobs, with 2,000 Linux vCPU minutes per month and 30 day build retention; Harness essentials plan caps users at 500, organizations at 1, custom dashboards at 5 and concurrent CI pipeline executions at 60, all unlimited only on Enterprise
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Buildkite and Harness actually diverge.
Identical on both: platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Development Tools).
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Buildkite
- Free plan caps at 5 users and 10 concurrent jobs, with 2,000 Linux vCPU minutes per month and 30 day build retention
- Pro plan is $30 per active user per month, capped at 50 users, with only 10 of the up to 250 concurrent agents included before extra usage
- Enterprise plan enforces a 30 user minimum even though pricing itself is custom
- Hosted compute beyond included minutes is metered at $0.004 per vCPU minute on Linux and $0.02 per vCPU minute on Mac
Harness
- Essentials plan caps users at 500, organizations at 1, custom dashboards at 5 and concurrent CI pipeline executions at 60, all unlimited only on Enterprise
- Pipeline history is limited to 6 months on the Essentials plan; extending to 25 months requires an Enterprise add-on
- Enterprise plan pricing is quote only, reached by contacting sales rather than a published rate
Pricing, plan by plan
Buildkite
FreeNo published plan breakdown. See the Buildkite review.
Harness
On requestNo published plan breakdown. See the Harness review.
Which should you pick?
Choose Harness if
Nothing in the data separates Harness from Buildkite on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.
Questions people ask
- Is Buildkite or Harness better?
- Neither clearly leads. Buildkite starts at Free and Harness at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Buildkite or Harness?
- Buildkite has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Buildkite and On request for Harness.
- Does Buildkite or Harness run on more platforms?
- Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- Can I use Buildkite for free?
- Yes. Buildkite has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Harness starts at On request.