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APIs · head to head

Hasura vs Longhorn

Hasura logo

Hasura

APIs

GraphQL engine that instantly creates production-ready GraphQL API from databases

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: Hasura active model definition: model/command accessed more than 1,000 times monthly; 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: Hasura covers GraphQL 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 Hasura and Longhorn actually diverge.

Attributes where Hasura and Longhorn differ
AttributeHasuraLonghorn
Pricing modelfreemiumOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsWebLinux, Kubernetes
CategoryAPIsCloud
Founded2017Unknown

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 Hasura

  • GraphQL API
  • Real-time subscriptions
  • Access control
  • PostgreSQL
  • MySQL
  • Webhooks
  • REST APIs
  • Cloud 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.

Hasura

  • Automatic GraphQL API generation from existing databasesnot Longhorn
  • Real-time data subscriptions for modern applicationsnot Longhorn
  • Backend infrastructure for web and mobile applicationsnot Longhorn
  • Event-triggered webhooks for database changesnot Longhorn

Longhorn

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

Where each one falls short

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

Hasura

  • Active model definition: model/command accessed more than 1,000 times monthly
  • Private DDN requires Base or Advanced plan

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

Hasura

Free
  • DDN FreeFree
    • Unlimited models
    • 1 supergraph developer
    • 15-minute observability retention
  • DDN Base$5/month
    • Per active model billing
    • Unlimited developers
    • 30-day observability retention
  • DDN Advanced$30/month
    • Per active model billing
    • Federated collaboration
    • Multi-repo CI/CD

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 Hasura if

  • You need graphql api.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want real-time subscriptions.
Hasura 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 Hasura or Longhorn better?
Neither clearly leads. Hasura 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, Hasura or Longhorn?
Hasura starts at Free and Longhorn at Free.
Does Hasura or Longhorn run on more platforms?
Hasura runs on Web. Longhorn runs on Linux, Kubernetes.
Can I use Hasura for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Hasura best used for?
Hasura is most often used for automatic graphql api generation from existing databases, real-time data subscriptions for modern applications, backend infrastructure for web and mobile applications, event-triggered webhooks for database changes. Of those, automatic graphql api generation from existing databases and real-time data subscriptions for modern applications are not what Longhorn is typically brought in for.
What can Hasura do that Longhorn cannot?
Hasura covers GraphQL API, Real-time subscriptions, Access control, PostgreSQL. Longhorn covers Per-volume controllers, Synchronous replication, Snapshots and backups, Volume expansion.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Hasura: How much does Hasura cost?

Hasura DDN Free is free. DDN Base starts at $5/active model/month, and DDN Advanced starts at $30/active model/month.

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.

Hasura: What is an active model in Hasura pricing?

An active model is defined as any model or command accessed more than 1,000 times monthly.

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.

Hasura: Is there a free version of Hasura?

Yes, Hasura DDN Free is always free and includes unlimited models, 1 supergraph developer, and 15-minute observability retention.

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.

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