Softwr

AI · head to head

Helicone vs Weaviate

Helicone logo

Helicone

AI

Open-source LLM observability and gateway platform for AI applications

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Weaviate logo

Weaviate

Machine Learning

Open-source vector database

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.; Weaviate the free tier caps at 100,000 objects, 1 GB of memory and a single collection
  • They diverge on capability: Helicone covers Request dashboard and tracking, Weaviate covers Vector and keyword search.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Helicone and Weaviate actually diverge.

Attributes where Helicone and Weaviate differ
AttributeHeliconeWeaviate
Platformsweb, apiLinux, Mac, Windows, Web
CategoryAIMachine Learning
FoundedUnknown2019

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

  • Vector and keyword search
  • Built-in vectorizers
  • GraphQL API
  • Multi-tenancy
  • Hybrid search
  • OpenAI
  • Hugging Face
  • Cohere

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

Weaviate

  • Running a vector database for semantic and hybrid searchnot Helicone
  • Generating and storing embeddings alongside the objects they describenot 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.

Weaviate

  • The free tier caps at 100,000 objects, 1 GB of memory and a single collection
  • Billing is per million vector dimensions rather than per record, so wider embeddings cost proportionally more for the same object count
  • Premium is a prepaid contract starting at $400 a month rather than pay as you go
  • Storage rates do not fall consistently with tier, and Premium Dedicated is $0.1505 per GiB against $0.12 on the cheaper Flex plan
  • The Query Agent is metered separately, free to 1,000 requests a month and $30 a month plus overage beyond

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

Weaviate

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Full features
    • Self-hosted
  • ServerlessFree
    • Managed service
    • Auto-scaling

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 Weaviate if

  • You need vector and keyword search.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Mac, Windows, Web.
  • You also want built-in vectorizers.
Weaviate review

Questions people ask

Is Helicone or Weaviate better?
Neither clearly leads. Helicone starts at Free and Weaviate at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Helicone or Weaviate?
Helicone starts at Free and Weaviate at Free.
Does Helicone or Weaviate run on more platforms?
Helicone runs on web, api. Weaviate runs on Linux, Mac, Windows, Web.
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 Weaviate is typically brought in for.
What can Helicone do that Weaviate cannot?
Helicone covers Request dashboard and tracking, Sessions and segments, Helicone Query Language (HQL), Prompt datasets and improvement. Weaviate covers Vector and keyword search, Built-in vectorizers, GraphQL API, Multi-tenancy.

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
Weaviate: What pricing options does Weaviate offer?

Weaviate provides a free tier with usage-based pricing, plus enterprise options. Visit the pricing page for detailed information on plans.

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
Weaviate: Does Weaviate offer customer support?

Yes, support is included with Weaviate's cloud offerings. Enterprise customers receive first-class support from their global team of experts.

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
Weaviate: Can I deploy Weaviate on my own infrastructure?

Yes. Weaviate is open source and deployment-agnostic. You can run it in your own cloud environment or use their managed cloud service.

Source
Weaviate: What data security features does Weaviate provide?

Weaviate includes security & governance, RBAC, SOC 2 and HIPAA compliance, along with multi-tenancy and high availability for enterprise requirements.

Source
Weaviate: How do I get started with Weaviate?

Sign up for their cloud tier, create your first dataset, connect an LLM, and build your AI app. Documentation and quickstart guides are available for Python, Go, TypeScript, and JavaScript.

Source
Share

Related pages

More on Helicone

More on Weaviate

Keep looking

Other head to heads