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Cloud & Infrastructure · head to head

Chef vs Heroku

Chef logo

Chef

Cloud & Infrastructure

Infrastructure automation and management

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Heroku logo

Heroku

Cloud & Infrastructure

Cloud Application Platform

From
$7/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Chef has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Chef priced per node per year, at $59 on Business and $189 on Enterprise, so cost scales with fleet size rather than with team size; Heroku there is no free dyno tier; the cheapest Eco dyno is $5 per month
  • They diverge on capability: Chef covers Recipes, Heroku covers Git-based deployment.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Chef and Heroku actually diverge.

Attributes where Chef and Heroku differ
AttributeChefHeroku
Starting priceFree$7/month
Pricing modelopen-sourcesubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsLinux, Windows, Mac, ApiWeb, Api, Workers
Founded20092007

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cloud & Infrastructure).

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 Chef

  • Recipes
  • Cookbooks
  • Roles
  • Data bags
  • Attributes
  • Chef Server
  • Chef Infra
  • Chef Compliance

Only in Heroku

  • Git-based deployment
  • Buildpacks
  • Dynos (containers)
  • Add-ons marketplace
  • Postgres database
  • Environment variables
  • Logging
  • API

Both cover

  • Cloud deployment
  • Api support

What people use each for

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

Chef

  • Configuration management and infrastructure automation across server fleetsnot Heroku
  • Enforcing compliance and audit policy on managed nodesnot Heroku

Heroku

  • Deploying and scaling web applications with git push and no server administrationnot Chef
  • Running managed Postgres, Redis and Kafka as attached data servicesnot Chef
  • Isolated production environments in a Private Space for regulated workloadsnot Chef

Where each one falls short

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

Chef

  • Priced per node per year, at $59 on Business and $189 on Enterprise, so cost scales with fleet size rather than with team size
  • Tripling the price between the two published tiers puts compliance and audit features well above basic automation
  • Enterprise Plus and every self managed deployment are custom quoted with no published price

Heroku

  • There is no free dyno tier; the cheapest Eco dyno is $5 per month
  • Eco dynos sleep after 30 minutes of inactivity, are restricted to personal accounts and allow only 2 process types
  • Free SSL and 10 process types start at the Basic dyno at $7 per month
  • Private and Shield dyno types require a Private Space, which is billed on top of the dynos
  • Private Space dynos start at $250 per month for Private-M and $500 per month for Private-L
  • Dyno prices are per dyno per month, so an app with several process types multiplies the bill

Pricing, plan by plan

Chef

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Chef Infra
    • Community support
    • Full functionality
  • Chef Automate$4000/year
    • Chef Infra
    • Compliance automation
    • Insights

Heroku

$7/month
  • Hobby$7/month
    • 512MB RAM
    • Shared CPU
    • 1 web dyno
  • Standard$50/month
    • 512MB RAM
    • Dedicated CPU
    • Automatic scaling

Which should you pick?

Choose Chef if

  • You need recipes.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Mac, Api.
  • You also want cookbooks.
Chef review

Choose Heroku if

  • You need git-based deployment.
  • You work on Web, Api, Workers.
  • You also want buildpacks.
Heroku review

Questions people ask

Is Chef or Heroku better?
Neither clearly leads. Chef starts at Free and Heroku at $7/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Chef or Heroku?
Chef has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Chef and $7/month for Heroku.
Does Chef or Heroku run on more platforms?
Chef runs on Linux, Windows, Mac, Api. Heroku runs on Web, Api, Workers.
Can I use Chef for free?
Yes. Chef has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Heroku starts at $7/month.
What is Chef best used for?
Chef is most often used for configuration management and infrastructure automation across server fleets, enforcing compliance and audit policy on managed nodes. Of those, configuration management and infrastructure automation across server fleets and enforcing compliance and audit policy on managed nodes are not what Heroku is typically brought in for.
What can Chef do that Heroku cannot?
Chef covers Recipes, Cookbooks, Roles, Data bags. Heroku covers Git-based deployment, Buildpacks, Dynos (containers), Add-ons marketplace. Both handle Cloud deployment, Api support.
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