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Networking · head to head

Nebula vs Thanos

Nebula logo

Nebula

Networking

Certificate based overlay network from Slack, with identity and firewall rules carried in the certificate

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Thanos logo

Thanos

Cloud

Highly available Prometheus with long-term object storage

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Nebula the open source project has no user interface, no enrolment workflow and no revocation service, so certificate issuing, distribution and expiry become scripts you write and then have to keep working.; Thanos several components — sidecar, store, querier, compactor, ruler — each with its own configuration and failure modes
  • They diverge on capability: Nebula covers Certificate carried identity, Thanos covers Global query.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Nebula and Thanos actually diverge.

Attributes where Nebula and Thanos differ
AttributeNebulaThanos
PlatformsLinux, macOS, Windows, iOS, Android, FreeBSDKubernetes, Linux, Docker
CategoryNetworkingCloud

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (Open source, no licence fee), 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 Nebula

  • Certificate carried identity
  • Group based host firewall
  • Lighthouse discovery
  • Noise protocol encryption
  • Unsafe routes
  • Managed option

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.

Nebula

  • Flattening a network across several clouds and datacentres without VPC peering or route tablesnot Thanos
  • Very large fleets where a central policy service on the connection path is unacceptablenot Thanos
  • Environments that already run an internal certificate authority and want the network to use itnot Thanos
  • Replacing per host iptables rules with policy written against roles that follow the hostnot Thanos

Thanos

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

Where each one falls short

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

Nebula

  • The open source project has no user interface, no enrolment workflow and no revocation service, so certificate issuing, distribution and expiry become scripts you write and then have to keep working.
  • Revoking a compromised host means distributing a blocklist entry to every other host and reloading them, which is a fleet wide operation rather than a click, and easy to get wrong under pressure.
  • Changing a host group membership means reissuing and redeploying its certificate, so policy changes are a deployment rather than a configuration edit.
  • There is no identity provider integration or single sign on in the open source version, so it maps well to servers and badly to a fleet of user laptops.
  • NAT traversal is best effort and hosts behind symmetric NAT need a relay configured deliberately, so connectivity failures show up as intermittent rather than immediate and are awkward to diagnose.

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

Nebula

Free
  • NebulaFree
    • Full functionality under the MIT licence
    • No host limit
    • You operate the certificate authority and lighthouses
  • Defined Networking$undefined/month
    • Hosted control plane and enrolment
    • Managed certificate lifecycle and revocation
    • Policy and DNS interface

Thanos

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

Which should you pick?

Choose Nebula if

  • You need certificate carried identity.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows, iOS, Android, FreeBSD.
  • You also want group based host firewall.
Nebula 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 Nebula or Thanos better?
Neither clearly leads. Nebula starts at Free and Thanos at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Nebula or Thanos?
Nebula starts at Free and Thanos at Free.
Does Nebula or Thanos run on more platforms?
Nebula runs on Linux, macOS, Windows, iOS, Android, FreeBSD. Thanos runs on Kubernetes, Linux, Docker.
Can I use Nebula for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Nebula best used for?
Nebula is most often used for flattening a network across several clouds and datacentres without vpc peering or route tables, very large fleets where a central policy service on the connection path is unacceptable, environments that already run an internal certificate authority and want the network to use it, replacing per host iptables rules with policy written against roles that follow the host. Of those, flattening a network across several clouds and datacentres without vpc peering or route tables and very large fleets where a central policy service on the connection path is unacceptable are not what Thanos is typically brought in for.
What can Nebula do that Thanos cannot?
Nebula covers Certificate carried identity, Group based host firewall, Lighthouse discovery, Noise protocol encryption. Thanos covers Global query, Object storage retention, Deduplication, Downsampling.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Nebula: Does it use WireGuard?

No. Nebula predates the common WireGuard mesh tools and uses the Noise protocol framework with its own certificate format.

Thanos: Is Thanos free?

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

Nebula: Can I run it without Defined Networking?

Yes, entirely. Defined Networking sells the control plane conveniences, not the network itself.

Thanos: Does Thanos replace Prometheus?

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

Nebula: How do I revoke a host?

Add its certificate fingerprint to the blocklist in the configuration of the other hosts and reload them. There is no online revocation check.

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.

Nebula: Is it a good fit for laptops?

Less so than the identity provider based tools. There is no single sign on, so every laptop needs a certificate issued and renewed by whatever process you build.

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