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Lambda vs Thanos

Lambda logo

Lambda

Cloud

GPU supercomputers for AI training and inference at enterprise scale

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Thanos logo

Thanos

Cloud

Highly available Prometheus with long-term object storage

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Thanos has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Lambda no free tier or trial, requiring immediate commitment for testing; Thanos several components — sidecar, store, querier, compactor, ruler — each with its own configuration and failure modes
  • They diverge on capability: Lambda covers Superclusters, Thanos covers Global query.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Lambda and Thanos actually diverge.

Attributes where Lambda and Thanos differ
AttributeLambdaThanos
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelPay-as-you-go hourly pricing with volume discounts for reserved capacityOpen source, no licence fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsCloudKubernetes, Linux, Docker
Founded2012Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cloud).

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 Lambda

  • Superclusters
  • 1-Click Clusters
  • On-demand instances
  • Liquid cooling
  • InfiniBand networking
  • Managed orchestration
  • Co-engineering support

Only in Thanos

  • Global query
  • Object storage retention
  • Deduplication
  • Downsampling

What people use each for

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

Lambda

  • Training foundation models at scale with dedicated GPU infrastructurenot Thanos
  • Large-scale inference serving on enterprise-grade hardwarenot Thanos
  • Multi-GPU distributed training with InfiniBand networkingnot Thanos
  • Single-tenant secure compute for regulated industriesnot Thanos
  • AI lab infrastructure for frontier model developmentnot Thanos

Thanos

  • Querying metrics across many clusters or regions from one placenot Lambda
  • Retaining metrics for years without local disk growthnot Lambda
  • Removing the gap that appears when a single Prometheus instance restartsnot Lambda

Where each one falls short

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

Lambda

  • No free tier or trial, requiring immediate commitment for testing
  • Single-tenant Superclusters require custom pricing discussions
  • Pricing complexity across multiple GPU types and cluster sizes
  • Less suitable for experimentation or small teams with tight budgets

Thanos

  • Several components — sidecar, store, querier, compactor, ruler — each with its own configuration and failure modes
  • The compactor is a common source of operational trouble and must not run twice against the same bucket
  • Query latency over object storage is meaningfully higher than local Prometheus
  • Object storage costs and API request charges become real at high volume

Pricing, plan by plan

Lambda

On request
  • 1-Click Clusters B200$undefined/hourly
    • 16 GPUs: $9.86/GPU/hour
    • 256+ GPUs: $8.87/GPU/hour
    • 1-year+ reserved discounts available
  • 1-Click Clusters H100$undefined/hourly
    • 16 GPUs: $6.16/GPU/hour
    • 256+ GPUs: $5.54/GPU/hour
  • On-Demand Instances B200$undefined/hourly
    • SXM6: $6.69/GPU/hour
  • On-Demand Instances H100$undefined/hourly
    • SXM: $3.99/GPU/hour

Thanos

Free
  • ThanosFree
    • Full functionality
    • No usage limits
    • Community support

Which should you pick?

Choose Lambda if

  • You need superclusters.
  • You work on Cloud.
  • You also want 1-click clusters.
Lambda review

Choose Thanos if

  • You need global query.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Kubernetes, Linux, Docker.
  • You also want object storage retention.
Thanos review

Questions people ask

Is Lambda or Thanos better?
Neither clearly leads. Lambda starts at On request and Thanos at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Lambda or Thanos?
Thanos has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Lambda and Free for Thanos.
Does Lambda or Thanos run on more platforms?
Lambda runs on Cloud. Thanos runs on Kubernetes, Linux, Docker.
Can I use Thanos for free?
Yes. Thanos has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Lambda starts at On request.
What is Lambda best used for?
Lambda is most often used for training foundation models at scale with dedicated gpu infrastructure, large-scale inference serving on enterprise-grade hardware, multi-gpu distributed training with infiniband networking, single-tenant secure compute for regulated industries. Of those, training foundation models at scale with dedicated gpu infrastructure and large-scale inference serving on enterprise-grade hardware are not what Thanos is typically brought in for.
What can Lambda do that Thanos cannot?
Lambda covers Superclusters, 1-Click Clusters, On-demand instances, Liquid cooling. Thanos covers Global query, Object storage retention, Deduplication, Downsampling.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Lambda: What makes Lambda's infrastructure different?

Lambda offers single-tenant Superclusters with exclusive GPU access, liquid cooling, and NVIDIA Quantum-2 InfiniBand networking. The company is 100% focused on AI infrastructure with co-engineering support from teams who built infrastructure for major AI labs.

Source
Thanos: Is Thanos free?

Yes, open source and CNCF-incubating. Costs are the object storage it uses.

Lambda: How does pricing work for large clusters?

1-Click Clusters pricing ranges from $5.54-$9.86 per GPU/hour depending on GPU type and cluster size, with volume discounts for 256+ GPUs. Reserved capacity is available at custom pricing for 1-year+ commitments.

Source
Thanos: Does Thanos replace Prometheus?

No. It runs alongside existing Prometheus servers, adding global query, deduplication and long-term storage.

Lambda: Which GPU types are available?

Lambda offers NVIDIA B200, H100, A100, and Tesla V100 GPUs. Individual instances range from V100 at $0.79/hour to B200 SXM6 at $6.69/hour. Newer models like Vera Rubin are available in Superclusters.

Source
Thanos: Thanos or VictoriaMetrics?

Thanos layers onto Prometheus using object storage and is the more established multi-cluster answer. VictoriaMetrics is a separate store aiming at lower resource use and fewer moving parts.

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