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Developer Tools · head to head

Cortex vs Depot

Cortex logo

Cortex

Developer Tools

Internal developer portal that scores service ownership and maturity rather than just cataloguing services

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Depot logo

Depot

Developer Tools

Cloud-based builds and CI runs 55x faster with less cost

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Depot has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Cortex pricing is quote only, so a platform team cannot build a business case or compare against the true cost of self-hosted Backstage without entering a sales cycle first.; Depot developer plan minute limits may be insufficient for active development
  • They diverge on capability: Cortex covers Service catalogue, Depot covers Depot CI.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Cortex and Depot actually diverge.

Attributes where Cortex and Depot differ
AttributeCortexDepot
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelquoteUnknown
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, APICloud, GitHub, CLI
FoundedUnknown2022

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Developer Tools).

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 Cortex

  • Service catalogue
  • Scorecards
  • Initiatives
  • Self-service templates
  • Query language
  • Eng intelligence
  • Integrations layer
  • On-call and ownership mapping

Only in Depot

  • Depot CI
  • Container builds
  • GitHub Actions runners
  • Distributed caching
  • Build API
  • Depot Registry
  • Cross-platform builds
  • SSH debugging

What people use each for

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

Cortex

  • A platform team that needs to prove to leadership how far a Kubernetes or framework migration has actually progressed across hundreds of servicesnot Depot
  • An organisation where ownership of production services is genuinely unknown after reorganisations or acquisitionsnot Depot
  • Enforcing production readiness standards on new services at creation time rather than at incident reviewnot Depot
  • Replacing a self-hosted Backstage that is consuming a full-time engineer or two just to stay upgradednot Depot

Depot

  • Accelerating Docker builds for container-based developmentnot Cortex
  • Replacing GitHub Actions runners with faster infrastructurenot Cortex
  • Distributing cache across Monorepo buildsnot Cortex
  • Debugging failed CI builds interactively with SSHnot Cortex

Where each one falls short

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

Cortex

  • Pricing is quote only, so a platform team cannot build a business case or compare against the true cost of self-hosted Backstage without entering a sales cycle first.
  • The catalogue is only as accurate as the metadata you supply, so an organisation with inconsistent repository conventions spends its first quarter cleaning data before any scorecard means anything.
  • Scorecards create political friction: publishing a per-team grade turns an engineering standard into a performance metric, and teams will game the rules rather than fix the underlying issue.
  • It is closed source and hosted, so organisations with strict data residency or air-gap requirements have limited options compared with running Backstage themselves.
  • Value scales with organisation size, so a company with fifty engineers and thirty services will find the catalogue tells them nothing they did not already know while still paying an enterprise contract.

Depot

  • Developer plan minute limits may be insufficient for active development
  • Startup plan at $200/mo is expensive for smaller teams
  • Business plan requires custom pricing consultation
  • macOS M2 runners not available on Developer plan

Pricing, plan by plan

Cortex

On request
  • Cortex$undefined/year
    • Service catalogue and ownership mapping
    • Scorecards and initiatives
    • Self-service templates

Depot

Free
  • Developer$20/month
    • 1 user
    • 500 Docker build minutes per month
    • 2,000 Depot CI minutes per month
  • Startup$200/month
    • Unlimited users
    • 5,000 Docker build minutes per month
    • 20,000 Depot CI minutes per month
  • Business$undefined/custom
    • Custom pricing
    • Unlimited users
    • Custom monthly compute

Which should you pick?

Choose Cortex if

  • You need service catalogue.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want scorecards.
Cortex review

Choose Depot if

  • You need depot ci.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Cloud, GitHub, CLI.
  • You also want container builds.
Depot review

Questions people ask

Is Cortex or Depot better?
Neither clearly leads. Cortex starts at On request and Depot at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Cortex or Depot?
Depot has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Cortex and Free for Depot.
Does Cortex or Depot run on more platforms?
Cortex runs on Web, API. Depot runs on Cloud, GitHub, CLI.
Can I use Depot for free?
Yes. Depot has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Cortex starts at On request.
What is Cortex best used for?
Cortex is most often used for a platform team that needs to prove to leadership how far a kubernetes or framework migration has actually progressed across hundreds of services, an organisation where ownership of production services is genuinely unknown after reorganisations or acquisitions, enforcing production readiness standards on new services at creation time rather than at incident review, replacing a self-hosted backstage that is consuming a full-time engineer or two just to stay upgraded. Of those, a platform team that needs to prove to leadership how far a kubernetes or framework migration has actually progressed across hundreds of services and an organisation where ownership of production services is genuinely unknown after reorganisations or acquisitions are not what Depot is typically brought in for.
What can Cortex do that Depot cannot?
Cortex covers Service catalogue, Scorecards, Initiatives, Self-service templates. Depot covers Depot CI, Container builds, GitHub Actions runners, Distributed caching.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Cortex: How is Cortex different from Backstage?

Backstage is an open source framework you build and staff. Cortex is a hosted product with scorecards and initiatives out of the box and no platform team required to keep it running.

Depot: How much faster are Depot runners compared to GitHub Actions?

Depot runners offer 30% faster CPUs and 10x faster networking than standard GitHub-hosted runners, enabling builds to complete significantly faster.

Source
Cortex: Is pricing published?

No. Cortex requires a sales conversation and prepares a custom proposal.

Depot: What is included in the Developer plan?

Developer plan ($20/month) includes 500 Docker build minutes, 2,000 Depot CI minutes, 2,000 GitHub Actions minutes, 25 GB storage, unlimited concurrency, and community support.

Source
Cortex: Can it self-host?

It is offered as a hosted product; on-premise arrangements are handled through sales rather than published.

Depot: Can I use Depot with my own AWS account?

Yes, Depot Managed allows deployment within customer AWS accounts. This is available to interested customers; contact sales for details.

Source
Cortex: What is the main adoption risk?

Bad or missing service metadata. The catalogue and every scorecard on top of it inherit whatever quality your repositories already have.

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