Cloud & Infrastructure · head to head
Heroku vs Splunk
The short version
- Only Splunk has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Heroku there is no free dyno tier; the cheapest Eco dyno is $5 per month; Splunk no prices are published on any plan; every model requires contacting sales for an estimate
- They diverge on capability: Heroku covers Git-based deployment, Splunk covers Log aggregation.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Heroku and Splunk actually diverge.
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 Heroku
- Git-based deployment
- Buildpacks
- Dynos (containers)
- Add-ons marketplace
- Postgres database
- Environment variables
- Logging
- GitHub
Only in Splunk
- Log aggregation
- Real-time monitoring
- Data visualization
- Full-text search
- Custom dashboards
- Alert management
- Anomaly detection
- Log parsing
Both cover
- API
- Web support
- Api support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Heroku
- Deploying and scaling web applications with git push and no server administrationnot Splunk
- Running managed Postgres, Redis and Kafka as attached data servicesnot Splunk
- Isolated production environments in a Private Space for regulated workloadsnot Splunk
Splunk
- Log search and analysis across infrastructurenot Heroku
- SIEM, SOAR and UEBA for a security operations teamnot Heroku
- Application performance and infrastructure monitoringnot Heroku
- Cloud, private cloud or on-premises deploymentnot Heroku
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Heroku
- There is no free dyno tier; the cheapest Eco dyno is $5 per month
- Eco dynos sleep after 30 minutes of inactivity, are restricted to personal accounts and allow only 2 process types
- Free SSL and 10 process types start at the Basic dyno at $7 per month
- Private and Shield dyno types require a Private Space, which is billed on top of the dynos
- Private Space dynos start at $250 per month for Private-M and $500 per month for Private-L
- Dyno prices are per dyno per month, so an app with several process types multiplies the bill
Splunk
- No prices are published on any plan; every model requires contacting sales for an estimate
- Three separate pricing models, workload, ingest and entity, so the same deployment costs different amounts depending on which was signed
- Ingest pricing bills on data volume, so cost tracks how much you log rather than how much value you get from it
- Security, observability and platform are priced separately
Pricing, plan by plan
Heroku
$7/month- Hobby$7/month
- 512MB RAM
- Shared CPU
- 1 web dyno
- Standard$50/month
- 512MB RAM
- Dedicated CPU
- Automatic scaling
Splunk
Free- FreeFree
- Log aggregation
- Real-time monitoring
- Data visualization
Which should you pick?
Choose Heroku if
- You need git-based deployment.
- You work on Web, Api, Workers.
- You also want buildpacks.
Choose Splunk if
- You need log aggregation.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api.
- You also want real-time monitoring.
Questions people ask
- Is Heroku or Splunk better?
- Neither clearly leads. Heroku starts at $7/month and Splunk at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Heroku or Splunk?
- Splunk has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $7/month for Heroku and Free for Splunk.
- Does Heroku or Splunk run on more platforms?
- Heroku runs on Web, Api, Workers. Splunk runs on Web, Api.
- Can I use Splunk for free?
- Yes. Splunk has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Heroku starts at $7/month.
- What is Heroku best used for?
- Heroku is most often used for deploying and scaling web applications with git push and no server administration, running managed postgres, redis and kafka as attached data services, isolated production environments in a private space for regulated workloads. Of those, deploying and scaling web applications with git push and no server administration and running managed postgres, redis and kafka as attached data services are not what Splunk is typically brought in for.
- What can Heroku do that Splunk cannot?
- Heroku covers Git-based deployment, Buildpacks, Dynos (containers), Add-ons marketplace. Splunk covers Log aggregation, Real-time monitoring, Data visualization, Full-text search. Both handle API, Web support, Api support.
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- Splunk vs Deno Deploy
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- Splunk vs Linode
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- Splunk vs Prometheus
- Splunk vs Cloudflare
- Splunk vs Consul
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- Splunk vs Ivanti
- Splunk vs Palo Alto Networks
- Splunk vs Tailscale
- Splunk vs Traefik
- Splunk vs Ubiquiti UniFi