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Technology · head to head

PostHog vs Vault

PostHog logo

PostHog

Technology

The single platform to analyze, test, observe, and deploy new features

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Vault logo

Vault

Cloud

Manage Secrets and Protect Sensitive Data

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: PostHog the free tier covers 1M events, 5K web session recordings and 2.5K mobile recordings per month before usage-based billing starts; Vault vault 1.15.0 and later is licensed under the Business Source License 1.1, not an OSI open source licence, with IBM Corporation as licensor
  • They diverge on capability: PostHog covers Product analytics, Vault covers Secrets management.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which PostHog and Vault actually diverge.

Attributes where PostHog and Vault differ
AttributePostHogVault
Pricing modelusage-basedopen-source
PlatformsWeb, Ios, Android, ApiLinux, Windows, Mac, Cloud
CategoryTechnologyCloud
Founded20202015

Identical on both: starting price (Free), 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 PostHog

  • Product analytics
  • Session recording
  • Feature flags
  • A/B testing
  • Heatmaps
  • SQL access
  • Data warehouse
  • Apps platform

Only in Vault

  • Secrets management
  • Encryption
  • Authentication
  • Authorization
  • Audit logging
  • API access
  • High availability
  • Replication

Both cover

  • Cloud deployment

What people use each for

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

PostHog

  • Product analyticsnot Vault
  • Feature experimentationnot Vault
  • User behavior trackingnot Vault
  • A/B testingnot Vault
  • Debug production issuesnot Vault

Vault

  • Centrally storing and rotating secrets, API keys and database credentialsnot PostHog
  • Issuing short-lived dynamic credentials to applications instead of static passwordsnot PostHog
  • Encryption as a service and PKI certificate issuancenot PostHog

Where each one falls short

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

PostHog

  • The free tier covers 1M events, 5K web session recordings and 2.5K mobile recordings per month before usage-based billing starts
  • Accounts without a card on file are limited to 1 project; adding one raises it to 6
  • Data retention is 1 year until a card is added, which extends it to 7 years
  • Support is community-only until the account is on a paid plan
  • Error tracking is capped at 100K exceptions and surveys at 1500 responses per month on the free tier

Vault

  • Vault 1.15.0 and later is licensed under the Business Source License 1.1, not an OSI open source licence, with IBM Corporation as licensor
  • The Additional Use Grant forbids offering Vault to third parties on a hosted or embedded basis in a paid product that competes with IBM's paid versions of Vault
  • Each version only converts to MPL 2.0 four years after that version is published, and the Change Date is tracked per version
  • Replication, HSM support, namespaces, performance standby nodes, FIPS builds, control group authorisation, multi-factor authentication, secrets sync and lease count quotas all require a Vault Enterprise licence
  • A Vault Enterprise licence must be applied to the cluster before any Enterprise feature can be used

Pricing, plan by plan

PostHog

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 1M events/month
    • 5K sessions/month
    • Unlimited users
  • Paid$undefined/month
    • $0.00031/event
    • $0.005/session
    • Advanced permissions
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • SAML SSO
    • Advanced security
    • Dedicated support

Vault

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Secrets management
    • Encryption as a service
    • Identity management
  • EnterpriseFree
    • Advanced features
    • Premium support
    • Dedicated updates

Which should you pick?

Choose PostHog if

  • You need product analytics.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
  • You also want session recording.
PostHog review

Choose Vault if

  • You need secrets management.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Mac, Cloud.
  • You also want encryption.
Vault review

Questions people ask

Is PostHog or Vault better?
Neither clearly leads. PostHog starts at Free and Vault at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, PostHog or Vault?
PostHog starts at Free and Vault at Free.
Does PostHog or Vault run on more platforms?
PostHog runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api. Vault runs on Linux, Windows, Mac, Cloud.
Can I use PostHog for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is PostHog best used for?
PostHog is most often used for product analytics, feature experimentation, user behavior tracking, a/b testing. Of those, product analytics and feature experimentation are not what Vault is typically brought in for.
What can PostHog do that Vault cannot?
PostHog covers Product analytics, Session recording, Feature flags, A/B testing. Vault covers Secrets management, Encryption, Authentication, Authorization. Both handle Cloud deployment.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

PostHog: What does PostHog's free tier include per month?

PostHog free tier includes: 1M analytics events, 5K session replays, 1M feature flag requests, 100K error tracking exceptions, 1,500 survey responses, 1M data warehouse rows, 10K data pipeline events, 100K AI observability events, 500 PostHog AI credits, 10K workflow messages, and 10GB log ingestion. Source: https://posthog.com/pricing

Source
Vault: Is HashiCorp Vault free to use?

Yes, Vault is available as a free, open-source project. The community version includes secrets management, certificate generation and rotation, encryption services, and credential management. Vault Enterprise is a commercial offering with additional features.

Source
PostHog: How much data retention does PostHog provide on paid plans?

PostHog free tier provides 1-year data retention. Pay-as-you-go plans offer 7-year data retention across all projects, enabling longer historical analysis. Source: https://posthog.com/pricing

Source
Vault: What are the differences between open-source Vault and Vault Enterprise?

Open-source Vault is free and self-hosted. Vault Enterprise includes additional features and commercial support. HashiCorp also offers Vault Dedicated on the HashiCorp Cloud Platform as a fully managed cloud option.

Source
PostHog: What percentage of PostHog users stay on the free tier?

PostHog states that 97% of companies use PostHog for free, indicating extensive free tier adoption. However, specific per-unit pricing rates for overages on paid plans are not published. Source: https://posthog.com/pricing

Source
Vault: Can I try HashiCorp Cloud Platform Vault without payment?

Yes, HashiCorp offers a free trial option for HCP Vault Dedicated. New users also receive a $500 credit to use across HashiCorp Cloud Platform services.

Source
PostHog: When does PostHog provide priority support on paid plans?

PostHog provides email or Slack support for accounts exceeding $2,000/month on pay-as-you-go plans. Specific response times and support SLAs are not detailed on their pricing page. Source: https://posthog.com/pricing

Source
Vault: What does Vault manage and protect?

Vault provides identity-based secrets management for users, machines, services, and AI agents. It automates authentication and authorization for access to secrets, passwords, certificates, encryption keys, and other sensitive data across your infrastructure.

Source
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