Softwr

AI · head to head

Helicone vs incident.io

Helicone logo

Helicone

AI

Open-source LLM observability and gateway platform for AI applications

From
Free
Rated
-
incident.io logo

incident.io

Logging

Software reliability platform with on-call management and agentic root cause analysis

From
Free
Rated
-

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Helicone the free Hobby plan is capped at 10,000 requests per month, which teams with production traffic can exceed quickly.; incident.io free plan limited to single team and basic features
  • They diverge on capability: Helicone covers Request dashboard and tracking, incident.io covers Intelligent alert routing.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Helicone and incident.io actually diverge.

Attributes where Helicone and incident.io differ
AttributeHeliconeincident.io
Pricing modelfreemiumsubscription
Platformsweb, apiWeb, Slack, Microsoft Teams
CategoryAILogging
FoundedUnknown2021

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 Helicone

  • Request dashboard and tracking
  • Sessions and segments
  • Helicone Query Language (HQL)
  • Prompt datasets and improvement
  • Playground
  • Rate limits and alerts

Only in incident.io

  • Intelligent alert routing
  • Agentic root cause analysis
  • On-call scheduling
  • Slack and Teams integration
  • AI call transcription
  • Status pages
  • Workflow automation

What people use each for

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

Helicone

  • Monitoring cost and latency of production LLM applicationsnot incident.io
  • Debugging multi-step agent sessionsnot incident.io
  • Managing and iterating on prompts across a teamnot incident.io
  • Routing requests across multiple LLM providersnot incident.io

incident.io

  • Manage incident response workflows in Slacknot Helicone
  • Automatically investigate root causes with AInot Helicone
  • Maintain on-call schedules across teamsnot Helicone
  • Track incident metrics and trendsnot Helicone
  • Communicate status to customers automaticallynot Helicone

Where each one falls short

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

Helicone

  • The free Hobby plan is capped at 10,000 requests per month, which teams with production traffic can exceed quickly.
  • Advanced compliance features like SOC 2 and HIPAA are only available starting at the $799/month Team plan.
  • Usage beyond the free tier is billed on top of the base subscription, adding cost unpredictability at scale.
  • On-premises deployment is restricted to the custom Enterprise tier.

incident.io

  • Free plan limited to single team and basic features
  • Per-user pricing increases costs for larger teams
  • Agentic features may require additional integrations
  • Advanced features concentrated in higher price tiers

Pricing, plan by plan

Helicone

Free
  • HobbyFree
    • 10,000 free requests
    • 1 GB storage
    • 1 seat
  • Pro$79/month
    • 10K free requests included, usage-based beyond
    • 7-day free trial
    • Unlimited playgrounds and workspaces
  • Team$799/month
    • 5 organizations
    • SOC 2 and HIPAA compliance
    • Dedicated Slack channel access
  • Enterprise$undefined/mo
    • Custom MSAs and SAML SSO
    • On-premises deployment
    • Bulk cloud discounts

incident.io

Free
  • BasicFree
    • Slack and Teams support
    • Single team on-call
    • Status pages
  • Pro$25/user-month
    • All Team features
    • Advanced insights
    • Custom dashboards
  • Enterprise$undefined/custom
    • All Pro features
    • Dedicated success manager
    • Advanced access controls

Which should you pick?

Choose Helicone if

  • You need request dashboard and tracking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, api.
  • You also want sessions and segments.

Choose incident.io if

  • You need intelligent alert routing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Slack, Microsoft Teams.
  • You also want agentic root cause analysis.

Questions people ask

Is Helicone or incident.io better?
Neither clearly leads. Helicone starts at Free and incident.io at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Helicone or incident.io?
Helicone starts at Free and incident.io at Free.
Does Helicone or incident.io run on more platforms?
Helicone runs on web, api. incident.io runs on Web, Slack, Microsoft Teams.
Can I use Helicone for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Helicone best used for?
Helicone is most often used for monitoring cost and latency of production llm applications, debugging multi-step agent sessions, managing and iterating on prompts across a team, routing requests across multiple llm providers. Of those, monitoring cost and latency of production llm applications and debugging multi-step agent sessions are not what incident.io is typically brought in for.
What can Helicone do that incident.io cannot?
Helicone covers Request dashboard and tracking, Sessions and segments, Helicone Query Language (HQL), Prompt datasets and improvement. incident.io covers Intelligent alert routing, Agentic root cause analysis, On-call scheduling, Slack and Teams integration.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Helicone: What does Helicone cost?

Helicone offers a free Hobby plan, a Pro plan at $79/month, a Team plan at $799/month, and custom Enterprise pricing, with usage-based charges applying beyond included request limits.

Source
incident.io: What is included in the free incident.io plan?

The Basic free plan includes Slack and Teams support, single team on-call, status pages, and 1 custom field, ideal for getting started with incident management.

Source
Helicone: Is there a free plan, and what are its limits?

The free Hobby plan includes 10,000 requests per month, 1 GB of storage, 1 seat, and 1 organization, aimed at kickstarting AI projects.

Source
incident.io: How much does on-call management cost?

On-call is an add-on costing $10/user/month for Team plan or $20/user/month for Pro plan, in addition to base incident management pricing.

Source
Helicone: Are there discounts available?

Helicone offers 50% off the first year for qualifying startups, discounts for non-profits, a $100 annual credit for open-source projects, and free access for students.

Source
incident.io: Can incident.io integrate with my existing tools?

incident.io natively integrates with Slack and Microsoft Teams for incident management workflows, with additional integrations available.

Source
incident.io: What SLA does incident.io offer?

Only the Enterprise plan includes a 99.99% SLA guarantee. Basic, Team, and Pro plans do not have published SLAs.

Source
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