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Developer Tools · head to head

HCP Terraform vs Teleport

HCP Terraform logo

HCP Terraform

Developer Tools

Infrastructure as code provisioning and management, formerly Terraform Cloud

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Teleport logo

Teleport

Cybersecurity

Certificate-based access to servers, Kubernetes, databases and apps, replacing shared credentials and VPNs

From
On request
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only HCP Terraform has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: HCP Terraform legacy free version deprecated; no current freemium tier; Teleport pricing is not published and is described as active users plus protected resources, so an autoscaling estate cannot forecast the bill and finance teams discover the true cost only after the first true-up.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which HCP Terraform and Teleport actually diverge.

Attributes where HCP Terraform and Teleport differ
AttributeHCP TerraformTeleport
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelusage-basedquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebLinux, macOS, Windows, Kubernetes, Cloud
CategoryDeveloper ToolsCybersecurity

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 HCP Terraform

Nothing recorded that Teleport does not also cover.

Only in Teleport

  • Short-lived certificates
  • Protocol coverage
  • Session recording and replay
  • Access Requests
  • Device Trust
  • Identity provider integration
  • Machine identity
  • FIPS and FedRAMP builds

What people use each for

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

HCP Terraform

  • Infrastructure as Code managementnot Teleport
  • Cloud resource provisioningnot Teleport

Teleport

  • Removing long-lived SSH keys and shared database passwords so that offboarding an engineer takes one action in the identity providernot HCP Terraform
  • Producing session recordings and per-user database audit trails as direct evidence for SOC 2 or FedRAMPnot HCP Terraform
  • Giving contractors or on-call engineers time-boxed, approved access to production instead of standing admin rightsnot HCP Terraform
  • Replacing a flat VPN with per-resource authorisation across servers, Kubernetes and internal web appsnot HCP Terraform

Where each one falls short

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

HCP Terraform

  • Legacy free version deprecated; no current freemium tier
  • New users receive $500 credit but still require usage to continue service
  • Terraform Enterprise requires custom pricing

Teleport

  • Pricing is not published and is described as active users plus protected resources, so an autoscaling estate cannot forecast the bill and finance teams discover the true cost only after the first true-up.
  • The proxy is a hard dependency on reaching production, so it needs its own high availability deployment and a tested break-glass path or an outage in Teleport becomes an outage in your ability to respond to outages.
  • The open source Community Edition omits Access Requests, Device Trust and the FIPS builds, which are exactly the controls an auditor asks about, so the free tier rarely survives a compliance review.
  • Self-hosting means running and upgrading a certificate authority and its backing store, and Teleport releases frequently enough that upgrade work becomes a standing operational commitment.
  • Coverage across protocols is uneven in depth, so teams with legacy systems, unusual databases or bespoke network appliances find gaps that still require the old VPN to remain in place alongside it.

Pricing, plan by plan

HCP Terraform

Free
  • Essentials$0.1/month
    • Per resource pricing
    • Remote state storage
    • VCS connection
  • Standard$0.47/month
    • Per resource pricing
    • Essentials features plus unlimited modules
    • Module deprecation
  • Premium$0.99/month
    • Per resource pricing
    • Standard features plus module revocation
    • Waypoint actions

Teleport

On request
  • Teleport Community Edition$undefined/year
    • Open source, self-hosted
    • SSH, Kubernetes, database and app access
    • Session recording
  • Teleport Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Cloud-hosted or self-hosted
    • Access Requests and approval workflow
    • Device Trust and hardware key enforcement

Which should you pick?

Choose HCP Terraform if

  • You want to start without paying.
HCP Terraform review

Choose Teleport if

  • You need short-lived certificates.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows, Kubernetes, Cloud.
  • You also want protocol coverage.
Teleport review

Questions people ask

Is HCP Terraform or Teleport better?
Neither clearly leads. HCP Terraform starts at Free and Teleport at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, HCP Terraform or Teleport?
HCP Terraform has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for HCP Terraform and On request for Teleport.
Does HCP Terraform or Teleport run on more platforms?
HCP Terraform runs on Web. Teleport runs on Linux, macOS, Windows, Kubernetes, Cloud.
Can I use HCP Terraform for free?
Yes. HCP Terraform has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Teleport starts at On request.
What is HCP Terraform best used for?
HCP Terraform is most often used for infrastructure as code management, cloud resource provisioning. Of those, infrastructure as code management and cloud resource provisioning are not what Teleport is typically brought in for.
What can HCP Terraform do that Teleport cannot?
Teleport covers Short-lived certificates, Protocol coverage, Session recording and replay, Access Requests.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

HCP Terraform: How much does HCP Terraform cost?

HCP Terraform uses per-resource pricing starting at $0.10/month/resource for Essentials, $0.47/month/resource for Standard, and $0.99/month/resource for Premium.

Source
Teleport: Is the open source edition usable in production?

Yes, but it lacks Access Requests, Device Trust and FIPS builds, which most compliance programmes end up requiring.

HCP Terraform: Does HCP Terraform offer a free tier?

No, the legacy free version has been deprecated. However, new users receive $500 credit to try the service.

Source
Teleport: How is it priced?

Not publicly. The vendor prices on active users and protected resources and provides a quote after a sales conversation.

HCP Terraform: What does the Standard plan include?

Standard plan at $0.47/month/resource includes unlimited modules, module deprecation, team notifications, no-code provisioning, and Waypoint templates.

Source
Teleport: What happens if Teleport goes down?

Nobody reaches the resources behind it, so you need a highly available deployment and a documented break-glass procedure.

Teleport: Does it replace our VPN?

For anything you put behind it, yes. Legacy systems and appliances it does not support will keep the VPN alive.

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