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Cloud · head to head

Northflank vs Puppet

Northflank logo

Northflank

Cloud

The runtime platform for AI-native companies

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Puppet logo

Puppet

Cloud

Infrastructure automation for enterprises

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Northflank pricing complexity with multiple rate dimensions; Puppet no pricing published for commercial tiers; requires contacting sales
  • They diverge on capability: Northflank covers Application deployments, Puppet covers Manifests.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Northflank and Puppet actually diverge.

Attributes where Northflank and Puppet differ
AttributeNorthflankPuppet
Pricing modelUnknownquote
PlatformsAWS, GCP, Azure, On-premisesLinux, Windows, Mac, Api
FoundedUnknown2005

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 Northflank

  • Application deployments
  • GPU support
  • Preview environments
  • Database management
  • Multi-cloud support
  • GitOps integration

Only in Puppet

  • Manifests
  • Modules
  • Classes
  • Variables
  • Facts
  • Puppet Master
  • Hiera
  • Facter

What people use each for

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

Northflank

  • Deploying AI inference models with GPU accelerationnot Puppet
  • Running training workloads on distributed GPUsnot Puppet
  • Building microservices with multi-cloud reliabilitynot Puppet

Puppet

  • Infrastructure automationnot Northflank
  • Configuration managementnot Northflank
  • DevOps at scalenot Northflank
  • Enterprise infrastructurenot Northflank

Where each one falls short

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

Northflank

  • Pricing complexity with multiple rate dimensions
  • GPU costs can be expensive for large-scale deployments
  • Learning curve for Kubernetes concepts

Puppet

  • No pricing published for commercial tiers; requires contacting sales
  • Enterprise and Advanced tiers require custom quote
  • Free tier limited to 25 nodes maximum

Pricing, plan by plan

Northflank

Free
  • Sandbox (Free)Free
    • Always-on compute with no sleeping
    • 2 free services
    • 1 free database
  • Pay-as-you-go$undefined/usage
    • CPU: $0.01667 per vCPU per hour
    • Memory: $0.00833 per GB per hour
    • Network egress: $0.06 per GB
  • Enterprise$undefined/custom
    • Custom pricing with volume discounts
    • Invoice-based billing
    • Annual commitments

Puppet

Free
  • DeveloperFree
    • Up to 25 nodes
  • Core Commercial$null/custom
    • 25+ nodes
    • Vendor-backed SLAs
    • Training with Certified Engineers
  • Enterprise$null/custom
    • Web GUI
    • RBAC
    • Multi-environment support
  • Advanced$null/custom
    • AI-powered features
    • Advanced patching
    • Vulnerability remediation

Which should you pick?

Choose Northflank if

  • You need application deployments.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on AWS, GCP, Azure, On-premises.
  • You also want gpu support.
Northflank review

Choose Puppet if

  • You need manifests.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Mac, Api.
  • You also want modules.
Puppet review

Questions people ask

Is Northflank or Puppet better?
Neither clearly leads. Northflank starts at Free and Puppet at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Northflank or Puppet?
Northflank starts at Free and Puppet at Free.
Does Northflank or Puppet run on more platforms?
Northflank runs on AWS, GCP, Azure, On-premises. Puppet runs on Linux, Windows, Mac, Api.
Can I use Northflank for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Northflank best used for?
Northflank is most often used for deploying ai inference models with gpu acceleration, running training workloads on distributed gpus, building microservices with multi-cloud reliability. Of those, deploying ai inference models with gpu acceleration and running training workloads on distributed gpus are not what Puppet is typically brought in for.
What can Northflank do that Puppet cannot?
Northflank covers Application deployments, GPU support, Preview environments, Database management. Puppet covers Manifests, Modules, Classes, Variables.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Northflank: What is included in the free Sandbox tier?

The Sandbox includes always-on compute, 2 free services, 1 free database, 2 free cron jobs, and is perfect for testing applications.

Source
Puppet: How much does Puppet cost?

Puppet's Developer tier is free for up to 25 nodes. Commercial, Enterprise, and Advanced tiers require contacting their sales team for a custom quote.

Source
Northflank: How much does CPU cost on Northflank?

CPU costs $0.01667 per vCPU per hour on pay-as-you-go pricing.

Source
Puppet: Is there a free version of Puppet?

Yes, Puppet's Developer tier is free forever for up to 25 nodes of infrastructure.

Source
Northflank: What GPUs are available?

GPU options include NVIDIA L4 at $0.80/hr through H100 at $2.74/hr.

Source
Puppet: What does the Enterprise tier include?

Puppet's Enterprise tier includes web GUI, RBAC, and multi-environment support for organizations managing infrastructure at scale, with pricing available upon request.

Source
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