Softwr

Software · head to head

Helicone vs Mention

Helicone logo

Helicone

Software

Open-source LLM observability and gateway platform for AI applications

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Mention logo

Mention

Software

Real-time media monitoring made simple

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

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.; Mention historical data access is not included in the Company plan and is only available as a paid add-on
  • They diverge on capability: Helicone covers Request dashboard and tracking, Mention covers Real-time monitoring.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Helicone and Mention actually diverge.

Attributes where Helicone and Mention differ
AttributeHeliconeMention
Platformsweb, apiWeb, Ios, Android
FoundedUnknown2012

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (freemium), 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 Helicone

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

Only in Mention

  • Real-time monitoring
  • Sentiment analysis
  • Influencer identification
  • Competitive analysis
  • Custom reports
  • Slack
  • Zapier
  • Buffer

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 Mention
  • Debugging multi-step agent sessionsnot Mention
  • Managing and iterating on prompts across a teamnot Mention
  • Routing requests across multiple LLM providersnot Mention

Mention

  • Brand monitoringnot Helicone
  • Competitor trackingnot Helicone
  • Social listeningnot Helicone
  • Reputation managementnot 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.

Mention

  • Historical data access is not included in the Company plan and is only available as a paid add-on

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

Mention

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 1 alert
    • 1,000 mentions
    • Basic monitoring
  • Solo$41/month
    • 2 alerts
    • 5,000 mentions
    • Boolean search
  • Pro$83/month
    • 5 alerts
    • 10,000 mentions
    • Team features
  • EnterpriseFree
    • Unlimited alerts
    • Unlimited mentions
    • Custom integrations

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.
Helicone review

Choose Mention if

  • You need real-time monitoring.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want sentiment analysis.
Mention review

Questions people ask

Is Helicone or Mention better?
Neither clearly leads. Helicone starts at Free and Mention at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Helicone or Mention?
Helicone starts at Free and Mention at Free.
Does Helicone or Mention run on more platforms?
Helicone runs on web, api. Mention runs on Web, Ios, Android.
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 Mention is typically brought in for.
What can Helicone do that Mention cannot?
Helicone covers Request dashboard and tracking, Sessions and segments, Helicone Query Language (HQL), Prompt datasets and improvement. Mention covers Real-time monitoring, Sentiment analysis, Influencer identification, Competitive analysis.

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
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
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
Share

Related pages

More on Helicone

More on Mention

Keep looking

Other head to heads