Softwr

Cybersecurity · head to head

Chainguard vs Cloudflare

Chainguard logo

Chainguard

Cybersecurity

Secure-by-default open source software with hardened container images and libraries

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Cloudflare logo

Cloudflare

Networking

The web performance and security company

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Chainguard containers Catalog at 19,000 USD/year expensive for teams under 10 people; Cloudflare free tier limited to basic features (no advanced analytics or premium features)
  • They diverge on capability: Chainguard covers Hardened container images, Cloudflare covers Global CDN.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Chainguard and Cloudflare actually diverge.

Attributes where Chainguard and Cloudflare differ
AttributeChainguardCloudflare
Pricing modelLicensing by artifact type and team sizefreemium
PlatformsCloud, Container, VMWeb
CategoryCybersecurityNetworking
FoundedUnknown2009

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

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 Chainguard

  • Hardened container images
  • CVE remediation SLA
  • SLSA L2/L3 builds
  • Sigstore signatures
  • SBOM generation
  • Language libraries
  • VM images
  • Artifact scanning

Only in Cloudflare

  • Global CDN
  • DDoS Protection
  • WAF
  • DNS
  • SSL/TLS
  • Load Balancing
  • Bot Management
  • Workers (Serverless)

What people use each for

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

Chainguard

  • Deploying hardened container images with minimal attack surfacenot Cloudflare
  • Meeting supply chain security requirements for regulated industriesnot Cloudflare
  • Reducing CVE exposure with contractual remediation guaranteesnot Cloudflare
  • Building secure language packages with automatic backportsnot Cloudflare
  • Verifying artifact provenance with Sigstore signaturesnot Cloudflare

Cloudflare

  • Global content delivery network (CDN) with 330+ data centres worldwidenot Chainguard
  • DDoS protection and bot blockingnot Chainguard
  • Web application security and rate limitingnot Chainguard
  • DNS management and domain protectionnot Chainguard
  • Static and dynamic content cachingnot Chainguard
  • Serverless computing via Cloudflare Workersnot Chainguard
  • Database and storage services (D1, R2)not Chainguard
  • Performance optimisation for Core Web Vitalsnot Chainguard

Where each one falls short

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

Chainguard

  • Containers Catalog at 19,000 USD/year expensive for teams under 10 people
  • Per-image pricing for containers requires custom quotes with no transparency
  • Free tier limited to 5 container images for testing
  • Libraries pricing by ecosystem and developer count lacks transparent per-developer cost
  • VM image catalog pricing opacity makes cost estimation difficult

Cloudflare

  • Free tier limited to basic features (no advanced analytics or premium features)
  • Pro tier ($20-25/month) caps at professional websites (higher tiers needed for enterprise scale)
  • Caches only anonymous API GET responses (authenticated requests and non-GET methods not cached)
  • Geographic coverage limited to announced 330+ cities (may not cover all regions globally)

Pricing, plan by plan

Chainguard

Free
  • Free TierFree
    • Five container images to test and deploy
  • Containers Per-Image$undefined/custom
    • Licensed by quantity and type
    • Base images, application images, AI/ML images, FIPS variants
    • Custom pricing per image
  • Containers Catalog$19000/year
    • For 10-person engineering teams
    • 2,000+ container images
    • Contractual CVE remediation SLAs
  • Libraries Licensing$undefined/custom
    • Licensed by ecosystem (Python, Java, JavaScript)
    • Licensed by developer count
    • Unlimited pulls with no metering

Cloudflare

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Cloudflare review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Chainguard if

  • You need hardened container images.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Cloud, Container, VM.
  • You also want cve remediation sla.
Chainguard review

Choose Cloudflare if

  • You need global cdn.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want ddos protection.
Cloudflare review

Questions people ask

Is Chainguard or Cloudflare better?
Neither clearly leads. Chainguard starts at Free and Cloudflare at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Chainguard or Cloudflare?
Chainguard starts at Free and Cloudflare at Free.
Does Chainguard or Cloudflare run on more platforms?
Chainguard runs on Cloud, Container, VM. Cloudflare runs on Web.
Can I use Chainguard for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Chainguard best used for?
Chainguard is most often used for deploying hardened container images with minimal attack surface, meeting supply chain security requirements for regulated industries, reducing cve exposure with contractual remediation guarantees, building secure language packages with automatic backports. Of those, deploying hardened container images with minimal attack surface and meeting supply chain security requirements for regulated industries are not what Cloudflare is typically brought in for.
What can Chainguard do that Cloudflare cannot?
Chainguard covers Hardened container images, CVE remediation SLA, SLSA L2/L3 builds, Sigstore signatures. Cloudflare covers Global CDN, DDoS Protection, WAF, DNS.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Chainguard: How much is the Chainguard Containers Catalog?

The Containers Catalog is 19,000 USD per year for 10-person engineering teams, providing access to 2,000+ hardened container images.

Source
Cloudflare: Does Cloudflare have a free tier?

Yes, Cloudflare includes a free tier with generous allowances: 100k daily requests for Workers, 10 GB monthly storage for R2, and 1 GB for Workers KV.

Source
Chainguard: What SLAs does Chainguard offer?

Chainguard provides contractual CVE remediation SLAs: 7 days for critical vulnerabilities, 14 days for high/medium/low severity, all with priority support.

Source
Cloudflare: How much does Cloudflare cost beyond the free tier?

Cloudflare uses pay-as-you-go pricing beyond free allocations, charging per million requests, per GB-month of storage, or per vCPU-second depending on the service.

Source
Chainguard: Can I try Chainguard before purchasing?

Yes. The free tier includes five container images for testing and deployment, allowing hands-on evaluation.

Source
Cloudflare: Does Cloudflare charge egress fees?

No, Cloudflare explicitly states no egress fees and no hidden costs; you only pay for the usage metrics specific to each service.

Source
Cloudflare: What's the Enterprise pricing model for Cloudflare?

Cloudflare Enterprise offers custom pricing and volume discounts available through direct sales for organizations with specialized needs and large-scale usage.

Source
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