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APIs · head to head

Directus vs Longhorn

Directus logo

Directus

APIs

Open-source data platform providing REST and GraphQL APIs

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Longhorn logo

Longhorn

Cloud

Open source distributed block storage for Kubernetes, incubating at the CNCF

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Directus free permissive use of the self hosted product is limited to organisations under $5M annual revenue with fewer than 50 employees, so crossing either threshold turns a free dependency into a paid licence; Longhorn there is no vendor and no SLA, so a production incident at three in the morning is your own problem unless you buy SUSE Rancher Prime support separately.
  • They diverge on capability: Directus covers REST API, Longhorn covers Per-volume controllers.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Directus and Longhorn actually diverge.

Attributes where Directus and Longhorn differ
AttributeDirectusLonghorn
Pricing modelopen-sourceOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsNode.js, Cloud, Self-hosted, DockerLinux, Kubernetes
CategoryAPIsCloud
Founded2014Unknown

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 Directus

  • REST API
  • GraphQL API
  • Database management
  • PostgreSQL
  • MySQL
  • SQLite
  • Webhooks
  • Node.js support

Only in Longhorn

  • Per-volume controllers
  • Synchronous replication
  • Snapshots and backups
  • Volume expansion
  • Disaster recovery volumes
  • Web interface

What people use each for

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

Directus

  • Wrapping an existing SQL database in a REST and GraphQL API with an admin interfacenot Longhorn
  • Running a self hosted headless CMS over a schema you already ownnot Longhorn

Longhorn

  • An on-premises Kubernetes cluster with local disks and no SAN that needs replicated persistent volumesnot Directus
  • Edge sites where shipping a storage array is impractical and three nodes is the whole clusternot Directus
  • A K3s deployment where the storage layer must be light enough to run alongside the workloadsnot Directus
  • A team that wants snapshots and S3 backups of persistent volumes without paying per-node storage licencesnot Directus

Where each one falls short

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

Directus

  • Free permissive use of the self hosted product is limited to organisations under $5M annual revenue with fewer than 50 employees, so crossing either threshold turns a free dependency into a paid licence
  • The free Core tier is a hard limit of 3 seats, 25 collections and 5 flows
  • The Team plan is $499 a month billed annually, or $599 monthly, with extra seats at $50 each
  • Team caps collections at 50, expandable to 100, and flows at 20

Longhorn

  • There is no vendor and no SLA, so a production incident at three in the morning is your own problem unless you buy SUSE Rancher Prime support separately.
  • Synchronous replication across nodes means write latency depends on the slowest replica and the network between nodes, which makes it a poor fit for latency-sensitive databases.
  • Every replica is a full copy, so three-way replication consumes three times the raw capacity, unlike erasure-coded systems that are far more space efficient.
  • It is designed for block storage on modest clusters and does not scale to the node counts or throughput that Ceph or a commercial array handles, so growth eventually forces a migration.
  • Recovery from certain degraded states, such as a volume stuck detaching or replicas failing to rebuild, requires manual intervention and knowledge of Longhorn internals that is not widely held.

Pricing, plan by plan

Directus

Free
  • CommunityFree
    • Self-hosted Directus
    • Community support
  • Cloud$25/monthly
    • Managed cloud
    • Automatic updates
    • Backups

Longhorn

Free
  • LonghornFree
    • Apache 2.0 licensed, no licence fee
    • Community support via GitHub and Slack only
    • No vendor SLA or escalation path

Which should you pick?

Choose Directus if

  • You need rest api.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Node.js, Cloud, Self-hosted, Docker.
  • You also want graphql api.
Directus review

Choose Longhorn if

  • You need per-volume controllers.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Kubernetes.
  • You also want synchronous replication.
Longhorn review

Questions people ask

Is Directus or Longhorn better?
Neither clearly leads. Directus starts at Free and Longhorn at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Directus or Longhorn?
Directus starts at Free and Longhorn at Free.
Does Directus or Longhorn run on more platforms?
Directus runs on Node.js, Cloud, Self-hosted, Docker. Longhorn runs on Linux, Kubernetes.
Can I use Directus for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Directus best used for?
Directus is most often used for wrapping an existing sql database in a rest and graphql api with an admin interface, running a self hosted headless cms over a schema you already own. Of those, wrapping an existing sql database in a rest and graphql api with an admin interface and running a self hosted headless cms over a schema you already own are not what Longhorn is typically brought in for.
What can Directus do that Longhorn cannot?
Directus covers REST API, GraphQL API, Database management, PostgreSQL. Longhorn covers Per-volume controllers, Synchronous replication, Snapshots and backups, Volume expansion.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Directus: What is Directus's pricing?

Directus Core is free and self-hosted. The Team tier costs $499/month (annual) or $599/month (rolling), including 10 user seats and cloud hosting at $99/month additional. Enterprise plans have custom pricing. Additional seats cost $50/month each.

Source
Longhorn: Who do we call when it breaks?

Nobody, unless you buy SUSE Rancher Prime, which includes commercial support for Longhorn. This is the decisive question for production use.

Directus: Can I use Directus for free?

Yes, Directus Core is completely free with 3 user seats, 25 Collections, 5 Flows, AI Assistant, and Advanced RBAC. Self-hosting is available at no cost.

Source
Longhorn: How much capacity does replication cost?

Full copies, so three replicas means three times the raw capacity. Budget accordingly rather than assuming erasure coding efficiency.

Directus: How many user seats does each Directus tier include?

Core includes 3 user seats, Team includes 10 SSO seats, and Enterprise includes custom SSO seat counts. Additional Team seats cost $50/seat per month.

Source
Longhorn: Is it suitable for production databases?

For modest workloads yes, but synchronous replication adds write latency and high-transaction databases usually want something faster.

Directus: What happens to my monthly Directus plan if I switch?

Monthly plans are grandfathered for six months after switching, and annual plans are honored until renewal. Self-hosted licenses are handled case-by-case at renewal.

Source
Directus: Is there a free trial for Directus?

No trial period is mentioned. Users can start with the free Core tier immediately without a credit card.

Source
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