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Developer Tools · head to head

Dagger vs Rhombus Systems

Dagger logo

Dagger

Developer Tools

Programmable CI/CD engine that runs your pipeline as containers on any runner

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Rhombus Systems logo

Rhombus Systems

Cybersecurity

Cloud-managed cameras, sensors and access control with a per-camera annual licence

From
$149/year
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Dagger has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Dagger dagger is not a CI provider, so you keep paying for GitHub Actions or GitLab runners underneath it; the Dagger Cloud subscription is an addition to your CI bill, not a replacement for it.; Rhombus Systems the per-camera annual licence never ends and a camera without an active licence stops working, so the total cost over a ten-year hardware life is several times the hardware price.
  • They diverge on capability: Dagger covers Pipelines as code, Rhombus Systems covers On-camera storage.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Dagger and Rhombus Systems actually diverge.

Attributes where Dagger and Rhombus Systems differ
AttributeDaggerRhombus Systems
Starting priceFree$149/year
Pricing modelPer month per team for Dagger CloudPer camera per year licence plus hardware
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsLinux, macOS, Windows, Self-hostedWeb, iOS, Android
CategoryDeveloper ToolsCybersecurity

Identical on both: 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 Dagger

  • Pipelines as code
  • Local and CI parity
  • Content-addressed caching
  • Dagger Functions and modules
  • CI-provider agnostic
  • Dagger Cloud traces
  • GitHub Checks integration
  • Container-native execution

Only in Rhombus Systems

  • On-camera storage
  • No NVR or server
  • AI search
  • Access control
  • Environmental sensors
  • Unlimited users
  • Ten year hardware warranty
  • Optional cloud archiving

What people use each for

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

Dagger

  • A platform team maintaining near-identical build YAML across forty repositories that wants one versioned module every repository calls insteadnot Rhombus Systems
  • An engineering organisation migrating off a CI provider that does not want to rewrite every pipeline as part of the migrationnot Rhombus Systems
  • A team whose engineers waste hours pushing commits to debug CI-only failures and needs to reproduce the exact run locallynot Rhombus Systems
  • A monorepo where most commits touch a small subset of services and cache-accurate step skipping cuts build minutes materiallynot Rhombus Systems

Rhombus Systems

  • A school district running video across dozens of buildings with no local IT at each sitenot Dagger
  • A clinic group needing door access and cameras in one console under a single audit trailnot Dagger
  • A logistics operator that wants to search for a specific vehicle across sites without scrubbing footagenot Dagger
  • An office estate replacing ageing NVRs where nobody remains who knows how to maintain themnot Dagger

Where each one falls short

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

Dagger

  • Dagger is not a CI provider, so you keep paying for GitHub Actions or GitLab runners underneath it; the Dagger Cloud subscription is an addition to your CI bill, not a replacement for it.
  • Writing pipelines in Go or TypeScript raises the barrier to entry: a release engineer who could edit a YAML step now needs to read code, and the people who can fix a broken build shrink to those comfortable with the SDK.
  • The engine runs as a container on the runner and needs a persistent cache volume to deliver its main benefit, so ephemeral CI runners give you correctness without the speed, and provisioning durable cache storage is extra platform work.
  • The Team plan caps at ten users and ten million events per month; an organisation of any size crosses that quickly and moves to Enterprise pricing that is not published, so cost at scale is unknowable up front.
  • The module ecosystem is young and thinly maintained relative to the marketplace of a mature CI provider, so integrations that exist as a one-line Action often have to be written yourself as a Dagger function.

Rhombus Systems

  • The per-camera annual licence never ends and a camera without an active licence stops working, so the total cost over a ten-year hardware life is several times the hardware price.
  • Cameras must be Rhombus, so there is no reuse of existing IP cameras and migrating away means replacing every device rather than changing software.
  • Cloud archiving is priced separately by retention and stream count, and long retention on multisensor cameras runs into five figures per camera, which can dwarf everything else in the quote.
  • On-camera storage is the default retention, so a camera physically stolen or destroyed takes its unarchived footage with it unless cloud archiving was paid for on that camera.
  • Analytics and integrations are good for mid-market needs but shallower than a dedicated enterprise VMS with a large third-party ecosystem, so specialist requirements like advanced LPR or forensic search hit limits.

Pricing, plan by plan

Dagger

Free
  • IndividualFree
    • One user
    • One million events per month
    • Workflow logs and function call traces
  • Team$50/month
    • Up to ten users
    • Ten million events per month
    • Module insights and module catalogue
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Custom user and event limits
    • SSO
    • Managed single-tenant deployment

Rhombus Systems

$149/year
  • Professional$149/year
    • Per camera per year
    • Cloud console and management
    • On-camera storage retention
  • Enterprise$199/year
    • Per camera per year
    • Everything in Professional
    • Flexible cloud archiving options
  • Cloud archiving$undefined/year
    • Priced separately by retention period and stream count
    • Multisensor cameras cost several times a single sensor camera
    • Long retention on multisensor models can reach five figures per camera

Which should you pick?

Choose Dagger if

  • You need pipelines as code.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows, Self-hosted.
  • You also want local and ci parity.
Dagger review

Choose Rhombus Systems if

  • You need on-camera storage.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want no nvr or server.
Rhombus Systems review

Questions people ask

Is Dagger or Rhombus Systems better?
Neither clearly leads. Dagger starts at Free and Rhombus Systems at $149/year, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Dagger or Rhombus Systems?
Dagger has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Dagger and $149/year for Rhombus Systems.
Does Dagger or Rhombus Systems run on more platforms?
Dagger runs on Linux, macOS, Windows, Self-hosted. Rhombus Systems runs on Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use Dagger for free?
Yes. Dagger has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Rhombus Systems starts at $149/year.
What is Dagger best used for?
Dagger is most often used for a platform team maintaining near-identical build yaml across forty repositories that wants one versioned module every repository calls instead, an engineering organisation migrating off a ci provider that does not want to rewrite every pipeline as part of the migration, a team whose engineers waste hours pushing commits to debug ci-only failures and needs to reproduce the exact run locally, a monorepo where most commits touch a small subset of services and cache-accurate step skipping cuts build minutes materially. Of those, a platform team maintaining near-identical build yaml across forty repositories that wants one versioned module every repository calls instead and an engineering organisation migrating off a ci provider that does not want to rewrite every pipeline as part of the migration are not what Rhombus Systems is typically brought in for.
What can Dagger do that Rhombus Systems cannot?
Dagger covers Pipelines as code, Local and CI parity, Content-addressed caching, Dagger Functions and modules. Rhombus Systems covers On-camera storage, No NVR or server, AI search, Access control.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Dagger: Does Dagger replace GitHub Actions?

No. Dagger runs inside GitHub Actions or any other CI. It replaces the YAML that describes your pipeline steps, not the trigger and runner layer.

Rhombus Systems: Do I need an NVR or a server?

No. Cameras record on board and connect directly to the cloud console, which is the main operational reason organisations pick it.

Dagger: Is the engine open source?

Yes, the Dagger engine and SDKs are open source and free. Dagger Cloud, the observability product, is what costs money.

Rhombus Systems: What does the licence cost?

Roughly $149 per camera per year for Professional and about $199 for Enterprise, typically sold in one, three, five or ten year terms.

Dagger: What is an event in the pricing?

Dagger Cloud meters pipeline telemetry events. One million per month is free; the Team plan at 50 USD per month allows ten million.

Rhombus Systems: Is cloud storage included?

No. On-camera storage is the default. Cloud archiving is a separate charge priced by retention duration and number of streams.

Dagger: Can I run the same pipeline on my laptop?

Yes, that is the main reason teams adopt it. The dagger CLI executes the identical graph locally, so CI-only failures become reproducible.

Rhombus Systems: Can I use my existing cameras?

No. The platform works only with Rhombus hardware, which is the trade-off for the zero-server architecture.

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