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Software · head to head

Grafana vs Pulumi

Grafana logo

Grafana

Software

Observability and Data Visualization

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Pulumi logo

Pulumi

Software

Modern infrastructure as code using programming languages

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; Pulumi the free Individual plan allows one user and one concurrent stack update
  • They diverge on capability: Grafana covers Dashboard creation, Pulumi covers Multi-language support.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Grafana and Pulumi actually diverge.

Attributes where Grafana and Pulumi differ
AttributeGrafanaPulumi
Pricing modelopen-sourcefreemium
PlatformsWeb, ApiLinux, Windows, Mac, Api
Founded20142017

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

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 Pulumi

  • Multi-language support
  • Multi-cloud
  • State management
  • Secrets management
  • RBAC
  • Stacks
  • Automation API
  • Policy as Code

What people use each for

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

Grafana

  • Dashboards and visualisation over metrics, logs and tracesnot Pulumi
  • Running observability across infrastructure and applicationsnot Pulumi

Pulumi

  • Defining cloud infrastructure as code in TypeScript, Python, Go, C# or Java rather than a DSLnot Grafana
  • Managing Pulumi state and secrets in a hosted backend instead of self-managed storagenot Grafana
  • Policy, drift detection and deployment workflows for platform engineering teamsnot 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

Pulumi

  • The free Individual plan allows one user and one concurrent stack update
  • The Team plan is $40 per month base including 40 credits, and caps the organisation at 10 users
  • SAML/SSO, RBAC, audit logs and drift detection require the Enterprise plan at $400 per month base
  • The per-resource rate rises from $0.1825 per resource per month on Team to $0.365 on Enterprise, so upgrading raises the unit price as well as the base fee
  • Managed secrets are billed separately at $0.50 per secret per month on Team and $0.75 on Enterprise
  • Self-hosting, SCIM user sync, audit log export and 24x7 support are only in Business Critical, which is custom priced with no published rate
  • Team includes up to 500 resources and Enterprise up to 2,000, with everything beyond billed on demand as credits

Pricing, plan by plan

Grafana

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Dashboard creation
    • Alerting
    • Data source integration

Pulumi

Free
  • Pulumi CommunityFree
    • Open source
    • Community support
    • Self-hosted
  • Pulumi Cloud$10/month
    • Hosted backend
    • Team collaboration
    • RBAC

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 Pulumi if

  • You need multi-language support.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Mac, Api.
  • You also want multi-cloud.
Pulumi review

Questions people ask

Is Grafana or Pulumi better?
Neither clearly leads. Grafana starts at Free and Pulumi at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Grafana or Pulumi?
Grafana starts at Free and Pulumi at Free.
Does Grafana or Pulumi run on more platforms?
Grafana runs on Web, Api. Pulumi runs on Linux, Windows, Mac, Api.
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 dashboards and visualisation over metrics, logs and traces, running observability across infrastructure and applications. Of those, dashboards and visualisation over metrics, logs and traces and running observability across infrastructure and applications are not what Pulumi is typically brought in for.
What can Grafana do that Pulumi cannot?
Grafana covers Dashboard creation, Alerting, Data source integration, Visualization plugins. Pulumi covers Multi-language support, Multi-cloud, State management, Secrets management.
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