Softwr

Developer Tools · head to head

Garden vs Zscaler Internet Access

Garden logo

Garden

Developer Tools

Kubernetes development and testing automation with shared caching, now owned by Incredibuild

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Zscaler Internet Access logo

Zscaler Internet Access

Cybersecurity

Secure cloud-native internet and SaaS access

From
$100/year
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Garden has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Garden incredibuild acquired Garden in November 2024 and the pricing page now redirects to documentation, so there is no public commercial offer and no published roadmap for a team betting a platform on it.; Zscaler Internet Access the pricing page names two base tiers, Essentials Platform and Zscaler Platform, plus modular add ons including three Digital Experience Monitoring tiers, but publishes no dollar figures anywhere and routes buyers to a demo request for cost
  • They diverge on capability: Garden covers Action graph, Zscaler Internet Access covers Secure web gateway.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Garden and Zscaler Internet Access actually diverge.

Attributes where Garden and Zscaler Internet Access differ
AttributeGardenZscaler Internet Access
Starting priceFree$100/year
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feesubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsLinux, macOS, Windows, KubernetesWeb, Desktop, Mobile
CategoryDeveloper ToolsCybersecurity
FoundedUnknown2007

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 Garden

  • Action graph
  • Shared result caching
  • Remote Kubernetes environments
  • In-cluster builds
  • Same config everywhere
  • Hot reload sync
  • Helm and Kustomize support
  • Templating

Only in Zscaler Internet Access

  • Secure web gateway
  • Cloud firewall
  • URL filtering
  • Advanced threat protection
  • Data loss prevention
  • Cloud sandbox
  • Browser isolation
  • CASB

What people use each for

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

Garden

  • A platform team whose integration test suite takes longer than the coffee break and needs caching to cut the loopnot Zscaler Internet Access
  • An organisation with thirty or more services on Kubernetes where docker-compose no longer approximates productionnot Zscaler Internet Access
  • Giving every developer an ephemeral namespace instead of queuing for one shared staging environmentnot Zscaler Internet Access
  • Running the identical build and test definition locally and in CI so failures reproduce on a laptopnot Zscaler Internet Access

Zscaler Internet Access

  • Cloud Securitynot Garden
  • Zero Trustnot Garden
  • Web Securitynot Garden

Where each one falls short

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

Garden

  • Incredibuild acquired Garden in November 2024 and the pricing page now redirects to documentation, so there is no public commercial offer and no published roadmap for a team betting a platform on it.
  • It is tightly bound to Kubernetes, so teams running on ECS, Nomad, plain VMs or serverless get little from it and would need a different tool entirely.
  • The YAML action graph is a real configuration surface: a large monorepo needs someone to own and maintain Garden config as a first-class artefact, which is a standing platform-engineering cost.
  • Shared remote environments mean every developer needs cluster access and a cost allocation model, so cloud spend rises and namespace sprawl becomes a thing you have to police.
  • Caching correctness depends on declaring dependencies accurately; an under-declared action will serve a stale cached pass and hide a genuine test failure, which is a hard class of bug to notice.

Zscaler Internet Access

  • The pricing page names two base tiers, Essentials Platform and Zscaler Platform, plus modular add ons including three Digital Experience Monitoring tiers, but publishes no dollar figures anywhere and routes buyers to a demo request for cost

Pricing, plan by plan

Garden

Free
  • Garden open sourceFree
    • Apache 2.0 licensed CLI
    • Full action graph and caching
    • Self-managed clusters
  • Commercial tier$undefined/year
    • Hosted caching and team features
    • Support and onboarding
    • Pricing no longer published since the Incredibuild acquisition

Zscaler Internet Access

$100/year
  • ZIA Business$100/year
    • Web security
    • URL filtering
    • Cloud firewall
  • ZIA Transformation$200/year
    • All Business features
    • Advanced threat protection
    • Cloud sandbox
  • ZIA Unlimited$350/year
    • All Transformation features
    • Cloud browser isolation
    • CASB

Which should you pick?

Choose Garden if

  • You need action graph.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows, Kubernetes.
  • You also want shared result caching.
Garden review

Choose Zscaler Internet Access if

  • You need secure web gateway.
  • You work on Web, Desktop, Mobile.
  • You also want cloud firewall.
Zscaler Internet Access review

Questions people ask

Is Garden or Zscaler Internet Access better?
Neither clearly leads. Garden starts at Free and Zscaler Internet Access at $100/year, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Garden or Zscaler Internet Access?
Garden has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Garden and $100/year for Zscaler Internet Access.
Does Garden or Zscaler Internet Access run on more platforms?
Garden runs on Linux, macOS, Windows, Kubernetes. Zscaler Internet Access runs on Web, Desktop, Mobile.
Can I use Garden for free?
Yes. Garden has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Zscaler Internet Access starts at $100/year.
What is Garden best used for?
Garden is most often used for a platform team whose integration test suite takes longer than the coffee break and needs caching to cut the loop, an organisation with thirty or more services on kubernetes where docker-compose no longer approximates production, giving every developer an ephemeral namespace instead of queuing for one shared staging environment, running the identical build and test definition locally and in ci so failures reproduce on a laptop. Of those, a platform team whose integration test suite takes longer than the coffee break and needs caching to cut the loop and an organisation with thirty or more services on kubernetes where docker-compose no longer approximates production are not what Zscaler Internet Access is typically brought in for.
What can Garden do that Zscaler Internet Access cannot?
Garden covers Action graph, Shared result caching, Remote Kubernetes environments, In-cluster builds. Zscaler Internet Access covers Secure web gateway, Cloud firewall, URL filtering, Advanced threat protection.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Garden: Is Garden still maintained?

The open source project remains on GitHub under Incredibuild ownership, but the commercial pricing page redirects to the docs and there is no public paid offer.

Zscaler Internet Access: How many pricing tiers does Zscaler Internet Access offer?

Zscaler Internet Access offers two main platform bundles: the Essentials Platform (entry-level) and the Zscaler Platform (comprehensive). Specific pricing is not published online.

Source
Garden: Do I need Kubernetes?

Effectively yes. Garden is built around Kubernetes environments and offers little to teams on other runtimes.

Zscaler Internet Access: Are there optional add-on modules available?

Yes. Zscaler offers extensive optional capabilities in five categories including Inline Cyberthreat Protection, Private Access enhancements, Data Security, Security Operations, and Zero Trust Branch.

Source
Garden: Does it replace my CI system?

No. It runs inside GitHub Actions, GitLab CI or similar and speeds up what those pipelines execute.

Zscaler Internet Access: How is Zscaler Zero Trust Branch priced?

Zero Trust Branch is sized by encrypted throughput (200 Mbps to 10 Gbps) or endpoint count (200 to 5,000 endpoints), with pricing varying by configuration.

Source
Garden: What is the actual saving?

It comes from skipping builds and tests whose inputs have not changed, so the benefit scales with how many services you have and how often only a few change.

Zscaler Internet Access: How do I get Zscaler pricing?

Zscaler does not publish pricing online. You must request a demo or contact their sales team to receive a pricing quote.

Source
Share

Related pages

More on Garden

More on Zscaler Internet Access

Keep looking

Other head to heads