Communication & Collaboration · head to head
Novu vs Lark
Novu
Communication & Collaboration
Open-source notification infrastructure for multi-channel messaging
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Lark
Communication & Collaboration
The super app for team collaboration
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Novu free plan activity feed retention is limited to 24 hours, restricting how far back teams can debug delivery issues.; Lark lark's own pricing page description states it offers a free starter pack, a Pro plan, and an Enterprise plan, and directs buyers to Contact us rather than publishing Pro/Enterprise figures on the rendered page.
- They diverge on capability: Novu covers Multi-channel workflows, Lark covers Team messaging.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Novu and Lark actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Communication & Collaboration).
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 Novu
- Multi-channel workflows
- Advanced email editor
- Activity feed
- Multi-environment support
- Role-based access control
- Self-hosting
Only in Lark
- Team messaging
- Video conferencing
- Collaborative docs
- Cloud storage
- Calendar
- Jira
- GitHub
- Salesforce
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Novu
- Building multi-channel notification workflows for a SaaS productnot Lark
- Self-hosting notification infrastructure for data controlnot Lark
- Managing separate notification environments for staging and productionnot Lark
- Tracking notification delivery history and activitynot Lark
Lark
- Team communicationnot Novu
- Document collaborationnot Novu
- Project managementnot Novu
- Company intranetnot Novu
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Novu
- Free plan activity feed retention is limited to 24 hours, restricting how far back teams can debug delivery issues.
- Overage on Pro and Team plans is billed at $1.20 per 1,000 additional workflow runs, which can add up at scale.
- HIPAA BAA compliance and dedicated SSO are Enterprise-only and require custom pricing.
Lark
- Lark's own pricing page description states it offers a free starter pack, a Pro plan, and an Enterprise plan, and directs buyers to Contact us rather than publishing Pro/Enterprise figures on the rendered page.
Pricing, plan by plan
Novu
Free- FreeFree
- 10,000 workflow runs/month
- All channels included
- Up to 20 workflows
- Pro$30/month
- 30,000+ workflow runs/month
- Advanced email editor
- Remove Novu branding
- Team$250/month
- 250,000+ workflow runs/month
- Up to 10 environments
- 90-day activity feed retention
Lark
Free- StarterFree
- Up to 50 users
- 100GB storage
- Unlimited messaging
- Pro$12/month
- Unlimited users
- 1TB storage per user
- 24-hour meetings
- Enterprise$20/month
- SSO/SAML
- eDiscovery
- Custom retention
Which should you pick?
Choose Novu if
- You need multi-channel workflows.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on web, api.
- You also want advanced email editor.
Choose Lark if
- You need team messaging.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android.
- You also want video conferencing.
Questions people ask
- Is Novu or Lark better?
- Neither clearly leads. Novu starts at Free and Lark at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Novu or Lark?
- Novu starts at Free and Lark at Free.
- Does Novu or Lark run on more platforms?
- Novu runs on web, api. Lark runs on Web, Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android.
- Can I use Novu for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Novu best used for?
- Novu is most often used for building multi-channel notification workflows for a saas product, self-hosting notification infrastructure for data control, managing separate notification environments for staging and production, tracking notification delivery history and activity. Of those, building multi-channel notification workflows for a saas product and self-hosting notification infrastructure for data control are not what Lark is typically brought in for.
- What can Novu do that Lark cannot?
- Novu covers Multi-channel workflows, Advanced email editor, Activity feed, Multi-environment support. Lark covers Team messaging, Video conferencing, Collaborative docs, Cloud storage.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Novu: What does Novu cost?
Novu offers a Free plan for 10,000 workflow runs per month, Pro from $30/month for 30,000+ runs, Team from $250/month for 250,000+ runs, and custom Enterprise pricing for 10M+ runs.
SourceNovu: Is there a free plan, and what are its limits?
Yes, the Free plan includes 10,000 workflow runs per month, all messaging channels, up to 20 workflows, 2 environments, and up to 3 team members.
SourceNovu: How is usage metered?
Billing is based on the number of workflow runs per month rather than per user or per message, with overage on paid plans charged at $1.20 per 1,000 additional runs.
SourceRelated pages
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