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Technology · head to head

Confluent Cloud vs Steampipe

Confluent Cloud logo

Confluent Cloud

Technology

The data streaming platform built on Apache Kafka, delivered as a fully managed cloud service

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Steampipe logo

Steampipe

Developer Tools

Query cloud APIs, SaaS tools and code with SQL, with no extract or load step

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Confluent Cloud requires understanding of eCKU (Elastic Confluent Unit) billing; Steampipe aGPL-3.0 across all four engines is a procurement blocker at organisations that ban the licence outright, and the network clause reaches any internal portal or service that puts a web interface in front of it.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Confluent Cloud and Steampipe actually diverge.

Attributes where Confluent Cloud and Steampipe differ
AttributeConfluent CloudSteampipe
Pricing modelusage-basedOpen source, with paid hosting through Turbot Pipes
PlatformsWebmacOS, Linux, Windows, Docker, Web
CategoryTechnologyDeveloper Tools

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 Confluent Cloud

Nothing recorded that Steampipe does not also cover.

Only in Steampipe

  • SQL over live APIs
  • Wide plugin set
  • Embedded Postgres
  • Compliance benchmarks
  • Joins across providers
  • Hosted option

What people use each for

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

Confluent Cloud

  • Apache Kafka event streaming and processingnot Steampipe
  • Real-time data pipeline architecturenot Steampipe
  • Multi-cloud event broker deploymentnot Steampipe
  • Stream processing and analyticsnot Steampipe
  • Microservices data synchronizationnot Steampipe

Steampipe

  • Security teams answering posture questions against live cloud accounts rather than a nightly exportnot Confluent Cloud
  • Compliance evidence gathering where the answer must reflect the account at the moment it is askednot Confluent Cloud
  • Inventory and drift questions spanning several cloud providers in one querynot Confluent Cloud
  • Engineers who would rather write SQL than learn each provider command line toolnot Confluent Cloud

Where each one falls short

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

Confluent Cloud

  • Requires understanding of eCKU (Elastic Confluent Unit) billing
  • Data in/egress costs add $0.014-$0.050 per GB
  • Storage costs of $0.03-$0.08 per GB-month
  • Minimum commitment recommended for cost optimization

Steampipe

  • AGPL-3.0 across all four engines is a procurement blocker at organisations that ban the licence outright, and the network clause reaches any internal portal or service that puts a web interface in front of it.
  • Dashboards, benchmarks and mods were removed from Steampipe entirely at version 1.0 in October 2024 and now live in a separate product, so pre-2024 documentation and tutorials describe commands that no longer exist.
  • Live querying is bound by cloud provider API rate limits and keeps no persistent store by default, which is why a separate DuckDB-backed product exists for log volumes and why large accounts return slowly.
  • The company is fifteen people and bootstrapped, maintaining four command line tools plus a hosted service plus two further products, and the newer tools have thin community traction relative to that surface area.
  • Hosted tiers include only three users regardless of tier, with additional Enterprise users charged separately, so a team of thirty costs an order of magnitude more than the headline figure before compute and storage are counted.

Pricing, plan by plan

Confluent Cloud

Free
  • BasicFree
    • Free first eCKU
    • Then $0.14 per eCKU-hour
    • 99.5% uptime
  • Standard$385/month
    • $0.75 per eCKU-hour
    • 99.99% uptime with 2+ eCKUs
    • Infinite storage
  • Enterprise$895/month
    • $1.75-$2.25 per eCKU-hour
    • Private networking
    • GBps+ scaling
  • Freight$2300/month
    • $2.25 per eCKU-hour
    • Specialty logging tier
    • Highest throughput requirements

Steampipe

Free
  • Steampipe CLIFree
    • AGPL-3.0
    • All plugins
    • No user or query limits
  • Pipes DeveloperFree
    • One user
    • 400 compute minutes
    • 3GB storage
  • Pipes Team$49/month
    • Three users
    • 2,000 compute minutes
    • 20GB storage
  • Pipes Enterprise$249/month
    • Three users
    • 10,000 compute minutes
    • 100GB storage

Which should you pick?

Choose Confluent Cloud if

  • You want to start without paying.
Confluent Cloud review

Choose Steampipe if

  • You need sql over live apis.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on macOS, Linux, Windows, Docker, Web.
  • You also want wide plugin set.
Steampipe review

Questions people ask

Is Confluent Cloud or Steampipe better?
Neither clearly leads. Confluent Cloud starts at Free and Steampipe at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Confluent Cloud or Steampipe?
Confluent Cloud starts at Free and Steampipe at Free.
Does Confluent Cloud or Steampipe run on more platforms?
Confluent Cloud runs on Web. Steampipe runs on macOS, Linux, Windows, Docker, Web.
Can I use Confluent Cloud for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Confluent Cloud best used for?
Confluent Cloud is most often used for apache kafka event streaming and processing, real-time data pipeline architecture, multi-cloud event broker deployment, stream processing and analytics. Of those, apache kafka event streaming and processing and real-time data pipeline architecture are not what Steampipe is typically brought in for.
What can Confluent Cloud do that Steampipe cannot?
Steampipe covers SQL over live APIs, Wide plugin set, Embedded Postgres, Compliance benchmarks.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Confluent Cloud: How much does Confluent Cloud cost?

Confluent Cloud pricing starts free on Basic tier with $0.14 per eCKU-hour, Standard at $0.75 per eCKU-hour (~$385/month base), Enterprise at $1.75-$2.25 per eCKU-hour (~$895/month base), and Freight specialty tier at $2.25 per eCKU-hour (~$2300/month).

Source
Steampipe: When did Steampipe become AGPL?

May 2021, about four months after the project went public. It is a settled licence rather than a recent change, and predates the Business Source Licence wave it is often confused with.

Confluent Cloud: Is there a free tier for Confluent Cloud?

Yes, the Basic tier is free with one eCKU credit included. Additional usage is billed at $0.14 per eCKU-hour, plus data transfer and storage fees apply.

Source
Steampipe: Where did the dashboards and benchmarks go?

Into Powerpipe. They were deprecated in March 2024 and removed from Steampipe at version 1.0 in October 2024, so the check, dashboard, mod and variable commands are gone.

Confluent Cloud: What additional fees does Confluent Cloud charge?

Beyond eCKU hours, Confluent charges data in/egress at $0.014-$0.050 per GB and storage at $0.03-$0.08 per GB-month. Costs vary by tier and region.

Source
Steampipe: Is it fast on a large cloud estate?

Not always. Queries call provider APIs at request time, so rate limits rather than query planning set the pace, and there is no persistent store by default.

Confluent Cloud: Does Confluent offer discounts for higher usage?

Yes, volume discounts are negotiated upfront based on annual consumption estimates. Annual commitments allow flexible cross-product allocation with guaranteed cost savings.

Source
Steampipe: Does the AGPL affect internal use?

Running it internally for your own analysis is fine. Putting a web interface in front of it that other people use is where the network clause becomes a question for your legal team.

Steampipe: Is a bootstrapped vendor a risk?

It cuts both ways. There is no investor pressure toward a licence change or an exit, and there are also fifteen people supporting a large product surface.

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