Softwr

Networking · head to head

Grafana vs pfSense

Grafana logo

Grafana

Networking

Observability and Data Visualization

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
pfSense logo

pfSense

Networking

Open source firewall software with a free Community Edition and a separate commercial Plus edition sold by Netgate

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Grafana the free tier retains metrics, logs and traces for 14 days only; pfSense pfSense CE and pfSense Plus are not simply the same software with a support contract layered on top; Plus is a separately developed edition with its own feature set, and moving between them is a migration, not a toggle
  • They diverge on capability: Grafana covers Dashboard creation, pfSense covers Stateful firewall and NAT.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Grafana and pfSense actually diverge.

Attributes where Grafana and pfSense differ
AttributeGrafanapfSense
Pricing modelusage-basedOpen source Community Edition, free; commercial Plus edition sold separately by Netgate
PlatformsWeb, ApiLinux
Founded2014Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Networking).

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 Grafana

  • Dashboard creation
  • Alerting
  • Data source integration
  • Visualization plugins
  • API
  • Webhooks
  • REST
  • Web support

Only in pfSense

  • Stateful firewall and NAT
  • VPN support
  • Traffic shaping and QoS
  • Package ecosystem
  • CE and Plus editions

What people use each for

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

Grafana

  • Metrics visualization and monitoringnot pfSense
  • Log aggregation and analysisnot pfSense
  • Distributed traces managementnot pfSense
  • System performance profilingnot pfSense

pfSense

  • A home user or small business wanting a free, fully-featured firewall on commodity hardware with no licence costnot Grafana
  • A business wanting an integrated firewall appliance with vendor support, typically buying a Netgate appliance bundled with pfSense Plusnot Grafana
  • A team wanting to evaluate advanced features like real-time threat intelligence before committing to Netgate hardware or a Plus migrationnot Grafana
  • An organisation replacing an expensive commercial firewall with an open source alternative while retaining the option to add commercial support laternot Grafana

Where each one falls short

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

Grafana

  • The free tier retains metrics, logs and traces for 14 days only
  • Free is capped at 10,000 active metric series and 50 GB each of logs and traces a month
  • The Pro plan carries a $19 a month platform fee before any usage charges
  • Logs and traces are billed on three separate meters, at $0.050 per GB processed, $0.400 per GB written and $0.100 per GB retained
  • Retaining data is an ongoing charge rather than a one off, so historical data costs every month it exists

pfSense

  • pfSense CE and pfSense Plus are not simply the same software with a support contract layered on top; Plus is a separately developed edition with its own feature set, and moving between them is a migration, not a toggle
  • Running Plus on non-Netgate hardware depends on Netgate's current migration terms, which have changed over time, so a buyer planning to use white-box hardware with Plus should verify current eligibility rather than assume it works as it did previously
  • CE has no official vendor support channel; a business relying on it for production firewalling without a support contract is self-supporting on community forums
  • Some newer features and threat intelligence integrations are Plus-only, so CE users do not get feature parity going forward even though both editions remain under active development
  • Netgate's own appliance pricing and the terms of the CE-to-Plus migration path are not always clearly presented in one place, requiring some digging to understand the real total cost of a Plus deployment on non-Netgate hardware
  • As with any self-managed firewall, security depends on the operator applying updates and correctly configuring rules; there is no managed security operations layer included even in Plus

Pricing, plan by plan

Grafana

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Limited usage across all services
    • 14-day retention for metrics, logs, traces, profiles
    • Community support only
  • Pro$19/month
    • Pay-as-you-go pricing with volume discounts
    • 13-month retention for metrics
    • 30-day retention for logs/traces/profiles
  • Enterprise$25000/year
    • Custom pricing based on annual volume
    • Premium support included
    • Custom retention options

pfSense

Free
  • pfSense CEFree
    • Full firewall and routing functionality
    • No vendor lock-in to hardware
    • Community support
  • pfSense Plus (via Netgate appliance)$undefined/one-time
    • Bundled with Netgate hardware appliances from around $189
    • Threat intelligence feeds
    • Certified support tiers

Which should you pick?

Choose Grafana if

  • You need dashboard creation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want alerting.
Grafana review

Choose pfSense if

  • You need stateful firewall and nat.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux.
  • You also want vpn support.
pfSense review

Questions people ask

Is Grafana or pfSense better?
Neither clearly leads. Grafana starts at Free and pfSense at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Grafana or pfSense?
Grafana starts at Free and pfSense at Free.
Does Grafana or pfSense run on more platforms?
Grafana runs on Web, Api. pfSense runs on Linux.
Can I use Grafana for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Grafana best used for?
Grafana is most often used for metrics visualization and monitoring, log aggregation and analysis, distributed traces management, system performance profiling. Of those, metrics visualization and monitoring and log aggregation and analysis are not what pfSense is typically brought in for.
What can Grafana do that pfSense cannot?
Grafana covers Dashboard creation, Alerting, Data source integration, Visualization plugins. pfSense covers Stateful firewall and NAT, VPN support, Traffic shaping and QoS, Package ecosystem.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Grafana: What is Grafana's pricing model?

Grafana offers a freemium model with a free tier, Pro tier starting at 19 USD/month with pay-as-you-go usage charges, and Enterprise plans starting at 25000 USD/year.

Source
pfSense: What is the difference between pfSense CE and pfSense Plus?

CE is the free, open source edition installable on any compatible hardware; Plus is a commercial edition from Netgate with additional features and support, typically bundled with Netgate appliances.

Grafana: How long is data retention for each plan?

Free tier provides 14-day retention for metrics, logs, traces, and profiles. Pro tier extends this to 13 months for metrics and 30 days for logs/traces/profiles. Enterprise offers custom retention options.

Source
pfSense: Can I run pfSense Plus on my own hardware?

It is possible through a migration from a CE installation via Netgate's official channel, but the terms and availability of that path have changed over time and should be confirmed directly with Netgate.

Grafana: What support is included in each tier?

Free tier includes community support only. Pro tier provides 8 times 5 email support. Enterprise includes premium 24/7 support.

Source
pfSense: Is pfSense CE really free with no catch?

Yes, CE has no licence fee and no hardware lock-in, though it comes with community rather than vendor support.

Grafana: Does Grafana offer volume discounts?

Yes, Grafana uses adaptive pricing with automatic volume discounts as usage scales, and provides cost-optimization tools to help eliminate spending on unused data.

Source
Share

Related pages

More on Grafana

More on pfSense

Keep looking

Other head to heads