Softwr

Cloud · head to head

Nomad vs Passbolt

Nomad logo

Nomad

Cloud

Flexible workload orchestration

From
Free
Rated
-
Passbolt logo

Passbolt

Cybersecurity

Open-source password manager for teams with self-hosted or cloud deployment

From
Free
Rated
-

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Nomad nomad 1.7.0 and later is licensed under the Business Source License 1.1 with IBM Corporation as licensor, not an OSI open source licence; Passbolt pro Edition requires a minimum of 10 users, making it costlier for very small teams.
  • They diverge on capability: Nomad covers Container orchestration, Passbolt covers Password sharing and folders.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Nomad and Passbolt actually diverge.

Attributes where Nomad and Passbolt differ
AttributeNomadPassbolt
PlatformsLinux, Windows, Mac, Cloudweb, windows, mac, linux, api
CategoryCloudCybersecurity
Founded2015Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (open-source), 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 Nomad

  • Container orchestration
  • Job scheduling
  • Multi-cloud support
  • Auto-scaling
  • Service discovery
  • Rolling deployments
  • Monitoring integration
  • High availability

Only in Passbolt

  • Password sharing and folders
  • Groups and role-based access
  • Browser extensions and CLI
  • Open API
  • LDAP provisioning and SSO
  • Activity audit log

What people use each for

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

Nomad

  • Container and workload orchestration across infrastructurenot Passbolt
  • Multi-region application deploymentnot Passbolt
  • Flexible scheduling for batch jobs and servicesnot Passbolt

Passbolt

  • Self-hosting a team password manager for data sovereigntynot Nomad
  • Provisioning vault access from an existing LDAP/AD directorynot Nomad
  • Sharing credentials across engineering or IT teams via folders and groupsnot Nomad
  • Automating credential retrieval through the CLI or open APInot Nomad

Where each one falls short

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

Nomad

  • Nomad 1.7.0 and later is licensed under the Business Source License 1.1 with IBM Corporation as licensor, not an OSI open source licence
  • The Additional Use Grant forbids offering Nomad to third parties on a hosted or embedded basis in a paid product that competes with IBM's paid versions
  • Each version converts to MPL 2.0 only four years after that version is published
  • Resource quotas, Sentinel policies and audit logging sit in a Governance and Policy add-on module that is separate from the Enterprise base platform package
  • Multi-region deployments, multiple Vault namespaces and Nomad Autopilot advanced server management require Nomad Enterprise

Passbolt

  • Pro Edition requires a minimum of 10 users, making it costlier for very small teams.
  • Community Edition lacks SSO and LDAP provisioning, which many organizations need for onboarding at scale.
  • Self-hosting the Community Edition requires infrastructure and maintenance effort compared to fully managed competitors.
  • Enterprise-tier support and HA consulting require custom, quote-based pricing rather than transparent rates.

Pricing, plan by plan

Nomad

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Workload orchestration
    • Multi-cloud
    • Flexible scheduling

Passbolt

Free
  • Community EditionFree
    • Unlimited users
    • Password sharing and folders
    • Role-based access control
  • Pro Edition$4.9/month
    • Minimum 10 users, billed annually
    • LDAP/AD provisioning
    • Single sign-on
  • Enterprise Edition$undefined/month
    • High availability and disaster recovery consulting
    • White-glove migration
    • Custom feature development

Which should you pick?

Choose Nomad if

  • You need container orchestration.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Mac, Cloud.
  • You also want job scheduling.

Choose Passbolt if

  • You need password sharing and folders.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, windows, mac, linux, api.
  • You also want groups and role-based access.

Questions people ask

Is Nomad or Passbolt better?
Neither clearly leads. Nomad starts at Free and Passbolt at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Nomad or Passbolt?
Nomad starts at Free and Passbolt at Free.
Does Nomad or Passbolt run on more platforms?
Nomad runs on Linux, Windows, Mac, Cloud. Passbolt runs on web, windows, mac, linux, api.
Can I use Nomad for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Nomad best used for?
Nomad is most often used for container and workload orchestration across infrastructure, multi-region application deployment, flexible scheduling for batch jobs and services. Of those, container and workload orchestration across infrastructure and multi-region application deployment are not what Passbolt is typically brought in for.
What can Nomad do that Passbolt cannot?
Nomad covers Container orchestration, Job scheduling, Multi-cloud support, Auto-scaling. Passbolt covers Password sharing and folders, Groups and role-based access, Browser extensions and CLI, Open API.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Nomad: Is HashiCorp Nomad free?

HashiCorp Nomad is open source and free to use. Commercial enterprise support and hosting options may be available through HashiCorp, but the core product is free.

Source
Passbolt: Is Passbolt free to use?

Yes. The Community Edition is free forever with unlimited users, including password sharing, folders, groups, role-based access, browser extensions, a CLI, and an open API.

Source
Nomad: Does HashiCorp Nomad have a pricing model?

Nomad is open source software with no published pricing tiers. HashiCorp offers commercial hosting and support for their products on a usage-based or custom pricing model, but Nomad itself is free to download and deploy.

Source
Passbolt: What does the Pro Edition cost and add?

Pro Edition costs $4.90 per user per month billed annually, with a 10-user minimum, and adds LDAP/AD provisioning, single sign-on, account recovery escrow, activity audit logs, and next-business-day support.

Source
Nomad: What is HashiCorp's pricing model for enterprise Nomad?

HashiCorp offers flexible pricing for enterprise Nomad support including pay-as-you-go (PAYG) billing with no long-term commitment, flex plans with preferred pricing, and enterprise self-managed plans. Contact HashiCorp sales for custom quotes.

Source
Passbolt: What license is Passbolt distributed under?

All Passbolt editions, including Pro and Enterprise, are distributed under the AGPL v3 open-source license.

Source
Share

Related pages

Other head to heads