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Developer Tools · head to head

Harness vs Portworx

Harness logo

Harness

Developer Tools

Software delivery platform across CI, CD, security testing and cost management

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Portworx logo

Portworx

Cloud

Kubernetes-native storage and data services, priced by the node hour

From
$0.33/node hour
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Harness has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Harness essentials and Enterprise pricing requires sales contact; no published rates; Portworx bare metal nodes are charged at 1.11 USD per node hour against 0.33 for virtual nodes, so a bare metal cluster costs more than three times a virtualised one for identical capability.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Harness and Portworx actually diverge.

Attributes where Harness and Portworx differ
AttributeHarnessPortworx
Starting priceFree$0.33/node hour
Pricing modelfreemiumPer node hour
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebLinux
CategoryDeveloper ToolsCloud

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 Harness

Nothing recorded that Portworx does not also cover.

Only in Portworx

  • Container-native volumes
  • Failure domain placement
  • Volume encryption
  • Database automation
  • Disaster recovery
  • Autopilot capacity management
  • Hardware independence

What people use each for

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

Harness

  • Deploying apps to AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud with rollbacksnot Portworx
  • Integrating security scanners throughout build pipelines before productionnot Portworx
  • Automating cloud cost reduction and tracking unit-level expensesnot Portworx
  • Enabling developers to provision infrastructure without operations bottlenecksnot Portworx
  • Assessing deployment frequency and lead time productivity metricsnot Portworx

Portworx

  • Running a production PostgreSQL or Cassandra cluster on Kubernetes and needing the data to survive node lossnot Harness
  • A platform team offering self-service databases to developers on an internal Kubernetes platformnot Harness
  • Failing over stateful applications between clusters in different regions as a disaster recovery positionnot Harness
  • An OpenShift estate where the built-in storage option does not meet the availability requirement for stateful setsnot Harness

Where each one falls short

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

Harness

  • Essentials and Enterprise pricing requires sales contact; no published rates
  • DevOps Essentials has no on-premises deployment option
  • Internal Developer Portal requires minimum 20 developer licenses
  • Pipeline execution history retention 6 months (Essentials) vs 25 months as add-on (Enterprise)

Portworx

  • Bare metal nodes are charged at 1.11 USD per node hour against 0.33 for virtual nodes, so a bare metal cluster costs more than three times a virtualised one for identical capability.
  • A 1,000 node hour monthly minimum applies, which means small or intermittent clusters pay for capacity they do not consume.
  • Replicating volumes across nodes consumes real capacity and network bandwidth, so the underlying infrastructure cost rises alongside the licence in a way the node hour rate does not show.
  • Pure Storage ownership means roadmap priorities are set by an array vendor, and buyers should confirm that hardware independence remains contractual rather than assumed.
  • Operating it well requires Kubernetes storage expertise, and teams that adopted Kubernetes to simplify operations often find they have added a distributed storage system to run.

Pricing, plan by plan

Harness

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Starter platform for software delivery lifecycle
    • Open source options available (Harness Open Source, Litmus Chaos)
  • Essentials$null/month
    • Growing organizations with small to mid-size teams
    • Packaged DevOps Essentials bundle
    • Continuous software delivery capabilities
  • Enterprise$null/month
    • Large-scale organizations
    • Pick any modules based on needs
    • Advanced features

Portworx

$0.33/node hour
  • Portworx Enterprise on virtual machine nodes$0.33/node hour
    • Minimum 1,000 node hours per month
    • Replicated persistent volumes
    • Encryption and disaster recovery
  • Portworx Enterprise on bare metal nodes$1.11/node hour
    • Minimum 1,000 node hours per month
    • Same capabilities on bare metal clusters
    • Higher rate reflects node density

Which should you pick?

Choose Harness if

  • You want to start without paying.
Harness review

Choose Portworx if

  • You need container-native volumes.
  • You work on Linux.
  • You also want failure domain placement.
Portworx review

Questions people ask

Is Harness or Portworx better?
Neither clearly leads. Harness starts at Free and Portworx at $0.33/node hour, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Harness or Portworx?
Harness has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Harness and $0.33/node hour for Portworx.
Does Harness or Portworx run on more platforms?
Harness runs on Web. Portworx runs on Linux.
Can I use Harness for free?
Yes. Harness has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Portworx starts at $0.33/node hour.
What is Harness best used for?
Harness is most often used for deploying apps to aws, azure, and google cloud with rollbacks, integrating security scanners throughout build pipelines before production, automating cloud cost reduction and tracking unit-level expenses, enabling developers to provision infrastructure without operations bottlenecks. Of those, deploying apps to aws, azure, and google cloud with rollbacks and integrating security scanners throughout build pipelines before production are not what Portworx is typically brought in for.
What can Harness do that Portworx cannot?
Portworx covers Container-native volumes, Failure domain placement, Volume encryption, Database automation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Harness: Is there a free Harness plan?

Yes, Harness offers a free plan for individual developers and small teams with open source options including Harness Open Source and Litmus Chaos.

Source
Portworx: Is Portworx tied to Pure Storage hardware?

No. It runs on any Kubernetes distribution over any underlying storage, though Pure has owned it since 2020 and sets the roadmap.

Harness: What are Harness's paid pricing tiers?

Harness offers Essentials for growing teams and Enterprise for large-scale organizations. Both require contacting sales for custom pricing. Pricing is based on modules and features selected.

Source
Portworx: What does a real cluster cost?

At 0.33 USD per virtual node hour, twenty nodes running continuously is roughly 4,800 USD a month. Bare metal at 1.11 USD per node hour is around 16,000 USD for the same node count.

Harness: Can Harness be deployed on-premises?

Enterprise plans include self-managed platform deployment option. DevOps Essentials bundle does not offer on-premises deployment.

Source
Portworx: Is backup included?

No. Portworx Backup is a separately priced product covering Kubernetes application backup.

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