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Cloud · head to head

Nomad vs SST

Nomad logo

Nomad

Cloud

Flexible workload orchestration

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
SST logo

SST

Cloud

Build full-stack apps on your own infrastructure

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

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; SST primarily optimized for AWS with Cloudflare support
  • They diverge on capability: Nomad covers Container orchestration, SST covers Single config file.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Nomad and SST actually diverge.

Attributes where Nomad and SST differ
AttributeNomadSST
Pricing modelopen-sourceUnknown
PlatformsLinux, Windows, Mac, CloudAWS, Cloudflare, Node.js
Founded2015Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Nomad

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

Only in SST

  • Single config file
  • Resource linking
  • Local development
  • Multiple deployment stages
  • VPC tunneling

Both cover

  • Multi-cloud support

What people use each for

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

Nomad

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

SST

  • Deploying Next.js frontends with serverless backendsnot Nomad
  • Managing databases and storage alongside application codenot Nomad
  • Creating staging environments for feature testingnot 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

SST

  • Primarily optimized for AWS with Cloudflare support
  • Learning curve for developers unfamiliar with infrastructure concepts
  • Limited documentation for some advanced use cases

Pricing, plan by plan

Nomad

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

SST

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the SST review.

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.
Nomad review

Choose SST if

  • You need single config file.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on AWS, Cloudflare, Node.js.
  • You also want resource linking.
SST review

Questions people ask

Is Nomad or SST better?
Neither clearly leads. Nomad starts at Free and SST at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Nomad or SST?
Nomad starts at Free and SST at Free.
Does Nomad or SST run on more platforms?
Nomad runs on Linux, Windows, Mac, Cloud. SST runs on AWS, Cloudflare, Node.js.
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 SST is typically brought in for.
What can Nomad do that SST cannot?
Nomad covers Container orchestration, Job scheduling, Auto-scaling, Service discovery. SST covers Single config file, Resource linking, Local development, Multiple deployment stages. Both handle Multi-cloud support.

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
SST: Is SST free?

Yes, SST is open source and free. You only pay for cloud resources from AWS and other providers.

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
SST: What cloud providers does SST support?

SST supports over 150 providers through built-in AWS and Cloudflare components, plus Pulumi and Terraform providers.

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
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