Softwr

Project Management · head to head

Huly vs k6

Huly logo

Huly

Project Management

Open-source all-in-one project management and collaboration platform

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
k6 logo

k6

Testing

Load testing tool with JavaScript tests on a Go runtime, now owned by Grafana Labs

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Huly cloud pricing charges separately for storage and video/audio bandwidth, which can be unpredictable.; k6 tests run on a JavaScript engine embedded in Go rather than on Node.js, so npm packages, Node built-ins and existing shared test utilities generally do not work without being bundled to plain JavaScript, and often not even then.
  • They diverge on capability: Huly covers Team Planner, k6 covers JavaScript test scripts.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Huly and k6 actually diverge.

Attributes where Huly and k6 differ
AttributeHulyk6
Pricing modelfreemiumOpen source, no licence fee
Platformsweb, windows, mac, linuxWindows, macOS, Linux, Docker, Kubernetes
CategoryProject ManagementTesting

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 Huly

  • Team Planner
  • Project management
  • Virtual Office
  • Real-time chat
  • Document collaboration
  • GitHub sync

Only in k6

  • JavaScript test scripts
  • Thresholds and checks
  • Protocol coverage
  • Browser module
  • Executors
  • xk6 extensions
  • Metrics output
  • Kubernetes operator

What people use each for

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

Huly

  • Replacing multiple SaaS tools with one self-hostable platformnot k6
  • Remote team collaboration with persistent virtual officesnot k6
  • Issue tracking synced with GitHubnot k6
  • Combined docs and project management for small teamsnot k6

k6

  • Gating a deployment pipeline on a threshold such as 95th percentile latency under a defined arrival ratenot Huly
  • Generating tens of thousands of requests per second from a small number of machines without a load generator fleetnot Huly
  • Testing gRPC and WebSocket services with the same tooling and thresholds used for HTTP endpointsnot Huly
  • Correlating a load test against existing dashboards for an organisation already running Grafana and Prometheusnot Huly

Where each one falls short

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

Huly

  • Cloud pricing charges separately for storage and video/audio bandwidth, which can be unpredictable.
  • AI features are listed as 'TBD' rather than fully available.
  • Being a broad all-in-one tool, individual modules are less deep than dedicated best-of-breed products.
  • Self-hosting requires operational effort compared to fully managed competitors.

k6

  • Tests run on a JavaScript engine embedded in Go rather than on Node.js, so npm packages, Node built-ins and existing shared test utilities generally do not work without being bundled to plain JavaScript, and often not even then.
  • The open source binary runs on a single machine, so distributed load requires the Kubernetes operator or the cloud service, and the operator is infrastructure your team has to run and debug.
  • The AGPL-3.0 licence on the core requires legal review at any company that intends to embed k6 in a product it distributes or offers as a service, which is a slower path than a permissively licensed tool.
  • There is no result storage in the open source tool, so trend history means standing up Prometheus, InfluxDB or Grafana Cloud before load testing produces anything comparable over time.
  • Since the Grafana Labs acquisition the roadmap serves the Grafana observability stack, so a buyer choosing k6 as a standalone tool should expect the standalone experience to receive less investment than the cloud and dashboard integration.
  • Grafana Cloud billing is by virtual user hour, so a long soak test at modest concurrency costs far more than its peak load suggests, and cost planning has to be done in virtual user hours rather than in test runs.

Pricing, plan by plan

Huly

Free
  • CommonFree
    • Unlimited users
    • Unlimited Huly objects
    • 10GB storage
  • Rare$19.99/month
    • Unlimited users
    • 100GB storage
    • 100GB video/audio traffic
  • Epic$99.99/month
    • Unlimited users
    • 1TB storage
    • 500GB video/audio traffic
  • Legendary$399.99/month
    • Unlimited users
    • 10TB storage
    • 2TB video/audio traffic

k6

Free
  • k6 OSSFree
    • AGPL-3.0 licence
    • Full test engine, no virtual user limits
    • Runs on one machine unless distributed yourself
  • Grafana Cloud free tierFree
    • Includes a monthly allowance of virtual user hours
    • Hosted test results and dashboards
    • Shared with the rest of the Grafana Cloud free tier
  • Grafana Cloud k6$undefined/month
    • Billed by virtual user hours consumed
    • Load generation from multiple regions
    • Retained test history and comparison

Which should you pick?

Choose Huly if

  • You need team planner.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, windows, mac, linux.
  • You also want project management.
Huly review

Choose k6 if

  • You need javascript test scripts.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, macOS, Linux, Docker, Kubernetes.
  • You also want thresholds and checks.
k6 review

Questions people ask

Is Huly or k6 better?
Neither clearly leads. Huly starts at Free and k6 at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Huly or k6?
Huly starts at Free and k6 at Free.
Does Huly or k6 run on more platforms?
Huly runs on web, windows, mac, linux. k6 runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, Docker, Kubernetes.
Can I use Huly for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Huly best used for?
Huly is most often used for replacing multiple saas tools with one self-hostable platform, remote team collaboration with persistent virtual offices, issue tracking synced with github, combined docs and project management for small teams. Of those, replacing multiple saas tools with one self-hostable platform and remote team collaboration with persistent virtual offices are not what k6 is typically brought in for.
What can Huly do that k6 cannot?
Huly covers Team Planner, Project management, Virtual Office, Real-time chat. k6 covers JavaScript test scripts, Thresholds and checks, Protocol coverage, Browser module.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Huly: What does Huly cost?

Huly's cloud offering has a free Common plan plus paid Rare ($19.99/mo), Epic ($99.99/mo) and Legendary ($399.99/mo) tiers based on storage and video/audio traffic, plus a custom plan.

Source
k6: Can I use npm packages in a k6 test?

Usually not. Scripts run on a Go-embedded JavaScript engine with no Node.js runtime, so packages depending on Node built-ins fail and pure JavaScript libraries must be bundled first.

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

The free Common plan includes unlimited users and Huly objects but caps storage at 10GB and video/audio traffic at 10GB.

Source
k6: Is k6 free?

The core tool is free under AGPL-3.0 with no virtual user limits. Grafana Cloud k6 is a paid service billed by virtual user hours, with a free monthly allowance.

Huly: How is usage metered?

Huly charges cloud users based on consumed storage (for attachments and documents) and network usage for audio/video calls, while Huly objects themselves stay unlimited on every plan.

Source
k6: Does the Grafana acquisition affect the open source tool?

The tool remains open source and maintained, but investment is directed at making it a data source for Grafana, so standalone use is supported rather than prioritised.

k6: Can k6 replace a browser testing tool?

No. The browser module measures page-level metrics under load, but functional browser testing belongs in Playwright or a similar tool.

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