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Developer Tools · head to head

Depot vs Teleport

Depot logo

Depot

Developer Tools

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

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Teleport logo

Teleport

Cybersecurity

Certificate-based access to servers, Kubernetes, databases and apps, replacing shared credentials and VPNs

From
On request
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Depot has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Depot developer plan minute limits may be insufficient for active development; Teleport pricing is not published and is described as active users plus protected resources, so an autoscaling estate cannot forecast the bill and finance teams discover the true cost only after the first true-up.
  • They diverge on capability: Depot covers Depot CI, Teleport covers Short-lived certificates.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Depot and Teleport actually diverge.

Attributes where Depot and Teleport differ
AttributeDepotTeleport
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelUnknownquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsCloud, GitHub, CLILinux, macOS, Windows, Kubernetes, Cloud
CategoryDeveloper ToolsCybersecurity
Founded2022Unknown

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 Depot

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

Only in Teleport

  • Short-lived certificates
  • Protocol coverage
  • Session recording and replay
  • Access Requests
  • Device Trust
  • Identity provider integration
  • Machine identity
  • FIPS and FedRAMP builds

What people use each for

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

Depot

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

Teleport

  • Removing long-lived SSH keys and shared database passwords so that offboarding an engineer takes one action in the identity providernot Depot
  • Producing session recordings and per-user database audit trails as direct evidence for SOC 2 or FedRAMPnot Depot
  • Giving contractors or on-call engineers time-boxed, approved access to production instead of standing admin rightsnot Depot
  • Replacing a flat VPN with per-resource authorisation across servers, Kubernetes and internal web appsnot Depot

Where each one falls short

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

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

Teleport

  • Pricing is not published and is described as active users plus protected resources, so an autoscaling estate cannot forecast the bill and finance teams discover the true cost only after the first true-up.
  • The proxy is a hard dependency on reaching production, so it needs its own high availability deployment and a tested break-glass path or an outage in Teleport becomes an outage in your ability to respond to outages.
  • The open source Community Edition omits Access Requests, Device Trust and the FIPS builds, which are exactly the controls an auditor asks about, so the free tier rarely survives a compliance review.
  • Self-hosting means running and upgrading a certificate authority and its backing store, and Teleport releases frequently enough that upgrade work becomes a standing operational commitment.
  • Coverage across protocols is uneven in depth, so teams with legacy systems, unusual databases or bespoke network appliances find gaps that still require the old VPN to remain in place alongside it.

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Teleport

On request
  • Teleport Community Edition$undefined/year
    • Open source, self-hosted
    • SSH, Kubernetes, database and app access
    • Session recording
  • Teleport Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Cloud-hosted or self-hosted
    • Access Requests and approval workflow
    • Device Trust and hardware key enforcement

Which should you pick?

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

Choose Teleport if

  • You need short-lived certificates.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows, Kubernetes, Cloud.
  • You also want protocol coverage.
Teleport review

Questions people ask

Is Depot or Teleport better?
Neither clearly leads. Depot starts at Free and Teleport at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Depot or Teleport?
Depot has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Depot and On request for Teleport.
Does Depot or Teleport run on more platforms?
Depot runs on Cloud, GitHub, CLI. Teleport runs on Linux, macOS, Windows, Kubernetes, Cloud.
Can I use Depot for free?
Yes. Depot has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Teleport starts at On request.
What is Depot best used for?
Depot is most often used for accelerating docker builds for container-based development, replacing github actions runners with faster infrastructure, distributing cache across monorepo builds, debugging failed ci builds interactively with ssh. Of those, accelerating docker builds for container-based development and replacing github actions runners with faster infrastructure are not what Teleport is typically brought in for.
What can Depot do that Teleport cannot?
Depot covers Depot CI, Container builds, GitHub Actions runners, Distributed caching. Teleport covers Short-lived certificates, Protocol coverage, Session recording and replay, Access Requests.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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
Teleport: Is the open source edition usable in production?

Yes, but it lacks Access Requests, Device Trust and FIPS builds, which most compliance programmes end up requiring.

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
Teleport: How is it priced?

Not publicly. The vendor prices on active users and protected resources and provides a quote after a sales conversation.

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
Teleport: What happens if Teleport goes down?

Nobody reaches the resources behind it, so you need a highly available deployment and a documented break-glass procedure.

Teleport: Does it replace our VPN?

For anything you put behind it, yes. Legacy systems and appliances it does not support will keep the VPN alive.

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