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Databases · head to head

Cloudinary vs ConfigCat

Cloudinary logo

Cloudinary

Databases

Image and video API for developers

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Visit CloudinaryFull review
ConfigCat logo

ConfigCat

Developer Tools

Feature flag service priced per flag and environment with unlimited seats and unlimited monthly active users

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Visit ConfigCatFull review

The short version

  • Free plans on both; paid from $99/mo and $110/mo.
  • Where Cloudinary falls short: free plan includes only 25 monthly credits and is limited to 3 users and 1 account.
  • Prices and features on this page were last checked on 13 November 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Cloudinary and ConfigCat actually diverge.

Attributes where Cloudinary and ConfigCat differ
AttributeCloudinaryConfigCat
Pricing modelFreemiumPer month by feature flag and environment count
PlatformsWebWeb, API, iOS, Android, Windows
CategoryDatabasesDeveloper Tools

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes).

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 Cloudinary

Nothing recorded that ConfigCat does not also cover.

Only in ConfigCat

  • Feature flags and configuration
  • Percentage rollouts
  • Targeting rules and segments
  • Unlimited seats
  • Global CDN delivery
  • Audit log
  • Public API and webhooks
  • SDKs across languages

What people use each for

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

Cloudinary

  • Automating image transformations and delivery across multiple devicesnot ConfigCat
  • Generating AI-powered image captions and alternative text at scalenot ConfigCat
  • Transcoding and optimizing video with automatic subtitle generationnot ConfigCat
  • Building workflow automation for content teams without codingnot ConfigCat

ConfigCat

  • A consumer or mobile app with millions of users where per-MAU flag pricing would cost more than the flags are worthnot Cloudinary
  • A team that wants every engineer, product manager and support agent to have a login without paying per seatnot Cloudinary
  • Decoupling deployment from release with percentage rollouts and a kill switch, without buying an experimentation platformnot Cloudinary
  • A small team that needs ten flags permanently and can run indefinitely on the free tiernot Cloudinary

Where each one falls short

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

Cloudinary

  • Free plan includes only 25 monthly credits and is limited to 3 users and 1 account
  • Enterprise plan pricing is custom; rates not published
  • Monthly billing is more expensive than annual; yearly plan is $89/month for Plus ($224/month for Advanced)

ConfigCat

  • There is no experimentation or statistical analysis engine, so teams wanting real A/B tests with significance testing must buy and integrate a separate analytics or experimentation product
  • Pricing by flag count punishes exactly the hygiene you want: the Pro tier caps at 100 flags, so teams that do not aggressively retire stale flags are pushed to the 325 dollar Smart tier for housekeeping reasons rather than growth
  • The free tier allows only 2 environments, which does not cover the common development, staging and production split, so almost any real deployment starts on a paid plan
  • It is a smaller vendor than the category incumbents, so enterprise procurement teams will find less depth in compliance attestations, contractual terms and reference architecture than LaunchDarkly offers
  • Flag evaluation relies on SDK-side caching of a CDN-delivered config, which is fast but means propagation of a change is eventually consistent rather than instant, something to understand before relying on it as an emergency kill switch

Pricing, plan by plan

Cloudinary

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Upload widget
    • API
    • Search
  • Plus$99/mo
    • All Free features
    • S3 bucket backup
    • Auto-tagging search
  • Advanced$249/mo
    • All Plus features
    • Custom domain (CNAME)
    • Optional HTTPS SSL
  • EnterpriseOn request
    • Multi-CDN infrastructure
    • Enterprise SLAs
    • Designated success manager

ConfigCat

Free
  • Forever FreeFree
    • 10 feature flags
    • 2 environments and 2 products
    • 2 segments
  • Pro$110/mo
    • 100 feature flags
    • 3 environments and 3 products
    • Unlimited seats and MAUs
  • Smart$325/mo
    • Unlimited feature flags
    • Unlimited environments, products and segments
    • Unlimited seats and MAUs
  • Enterprise$900/mo
    • Everything in Smart
    • Enterprise support and controls
    • Unlimited everything on flag counts

Which should you pick?

Choose Cloudinary if

  • You want to start without paying.
Cloudinary review

Choose ConfigCat if

  • You need feature flags and configuration.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, API, iOS, Android, Windows.
  • You also want percentage rollouts.
ConfigCat review

Questions people ask

Is Cloudinary or ConfigCat better?
Neither clearly leads. Cloudinary starts at Free and ConfigCat at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Cloudinary or ConfigCat?
Cloudinary starts at Free and ConfigCat at Free.
Does Cloudinary or ConfigCat run on more platforms?
Cloudinary runs on Web. ConfigCat runs on Web, API, iOS, Android, Windows.
Can I use Cloudinary for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Cloudinary best used for?
Cloudinary is most often used for automating image transformations and delivery across multiple devices, generating ai-powered image captions and alternative text at scale, transcoding and optimizing video with automatic subtitle generation, building workflow automation for content teams without coding. Of those, automating image transformations and delivery across multiple devices and generating ai-powered image captions and alternative text at scale are not what ConfigCat is typically brought in for.
What can Cloudinary do that ConfigCat cannot?
ConfigCat covers Feature flags and configuration, Percentage rollouts, Targeting rules and segments, Unlimited seats.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Cloudinary: What are included in Cloudinary's free plan?

Cloudinary's free plan includes upload widget, API access, search, remote fetch, auto-backup, revision tracking, image and video transformations, video transcoding, and CDN delivery. The free plan includes 25 monthly credits, 3 users, and 1 account with community support.

Source
ConfigCat: How is ConfigCat priced?

By feature flag, environment and product count. Seats, monthly active users and flag reads are unlimited on every plan.

Cloudinary: How does Cloudinary's credit system work?

Cloudinary credits measure usage: one credit equals 1,000 transformations, or 1 GB managed storage, or 1 GB image bandwidth, or 2 GB video bandwidth. The free plan grants 25 credits per month, Plus plan 225 monthly credits, and Advanced plan 600 monthly credits.

Source
ConfigCat: Is the free tier usable?

For small projects yes, but at 10 flags and 2 environments it will not cover a dev, staging and production setup.

Cloudinary: What is the difference between Cloudinary Plus and Advanced plans?

Plus plan costs $99/month (or $89/month annually) and includes S3 backup, auto-tagging, and expedited support for up to 3 users across 2 accounts with 225 credits. Advanced is $249/month ($224/month annually), adds custom domain (CNAME) and SSL options for 5 users across 3 accounts with 600 credits.

Source
ConfigCat: Can it run A/B tests?

It can split traffic, but there is no statistics engine. You need a separate analytics tool to decide a winner.

Cloudinary: Does Cloudinary offer annual billing discounts?

Yes. Cloudinary's annual billing provides discounts: Plus plan is $89/month when billed yearly (versus $99/month monthly), and Advanced plan is $224/month when billed yearly (versus $249/month monthly).

Source
ConfigCat: How fast does a flag change take effect?

SDKs poll and cache, so changes propagate on the polling interval rather than instantly.

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