Softwr

Network & Connectivity · head to head

Prometheus vs Pulumi

Prometheus logo

Prometheus

Network & Connectivity

Open source monitoring and alerting toolkit for cloud native environments

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Pulumi logo

Pulumi

Cloud & Infrastructure

Modern infrastructure as code using programming languages

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Prometheus not suitable for per-request billing as collected data lacks 100% accuracy; Pulumi the free Individual plan allows one user and one concurrent stack update
  • They diverge on capability: Prometheus covers Multi-dimensional Data Model, Pulumi covers Multi-language support.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Prometheus and Pulumi actually diverge.

Attributes where Prometheus and Pulumi differ
AttributePrometheusPulumi
Pricing modelopen-sourcefreemium
PlatformsLinux, macOS, WindowsLinux, Windows, Mac, Api
CategoryNetwork & ConnectivityCloud & Infrastructure
Founded20152017

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 Prometheus

  • Multi-dimensional Data Model
  • PromQL Query Language
  • Pull-based Collection
  • Service Discovery
  • Alerting Rules
  • Federation
  • Local Storage
  • Grafana

Only in Pulumi

  • Multi-language support
  • Multi-cloud
  • State management
  • Secrets management
  • RBAC
  • Stacks
  • Automation API
  • Policy as Code

Both cover

  • Kubernetes
  • Linux support
  • Windows support

What people use each for

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

Prometheus

  • Cloud-native monitoring and alertingnot Pulumi
  • Time-series metrics collectionnot Pulumi
  • Infrastructure monitoringnot Pulumi

Pulumi

  • Defining cloud infrastructure as code in TypeScript, Python, Go, C# or Java rather than a DSLnot Prometheus
  • Managing Pulumi state and secrets in a hosted backend instead of self-managed storagenot Prometheus
  • Policy, drift detection and deployment workflows for platform engineering teamsnot Prometheus

Where each one falls short

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

Prometheus

  • Not suitable for per-request billing as collected data lacks 100% accuracy
  • Hard limit on scrape body size; large responses cause scrape failure
  • Per-scrape sample limit enforced; exceeding limit marks targets as failed
  • Not designed for long-term durable storage; optimised for metrics collection

Pulumi

  • The free Individual plan allows one user and one concurrent stack update
  • The Team plan is $40 per month base including 40 credits, and caps the organisation at 10 users
  • SAML/SSO, RBAC, audit logs and drift detection require the Enterprise plan at $400 per month base
  • The per-resource rate rises from $0.1825 per resource per month on Team to $0.365 on Enterprise, so upgrading raises the unit price as well as the base fee
  • Managed secrets are billed separately at $0.50 per secret per month on Team and $0.75 on Enterprise
  • Self-hosting, SCIM user sync, audit log export and 24x7 support are only in Business Critical, which is custom priced with no published rate
  • Team includes up to 500 resources and Enterprise up to 2,000, with everything beyond billed on demand as credits

Pricing, plan by plan

Prometheus

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Prometheus review.

Pulumi

Free
  • Pulumi CommunityFree
    • Open source
    • Community support
    • Self-hosted
  • Pulumi Cloud$10/month
    • Hosted backend
    • Team collaboration
    • RBAC

Which should you pick?

Choose Prometheus if

  • You need multi-dimensional data model.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows.
  • You also want promql query language.
Prometheus review

Choose Pulumi if

  • You need multi-language support.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Mac, Api.
  • You also want multi-cloud.
Pulumi review

Questions people ask

Is Prometheus or Pulumi better?
Neither clearly leads. Prometheus starts at Free and Pulumi at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Prometheus or Pulumi?
Prometheus starts at Free and Pulumi at Free.
Does Prometheus or Pulumi run on more platforms?
Prometheus runs on Linux, macOS, Windows. Pulumi runs on Linux, Windows, Mac, Api.
Can I use Prometheus for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Prometheus best used for?
Prometheus is most often used for cloud-native monitoring and alerting, time-series metrics collection, infrastructure monitoring. Of those, cloud-native monitoring and alerting and time-series metrics collection are not what Pulumi is typically brought in for.
What can Prometheus do that Pulumi cannot?
Prometheus covers Multi-dimensional Data Model, PromQL Query Language, Pull-based Collection, Service Discovery. Pulumi covers Multi-language support, Multi-cloud, State management, Secrets management. Both handle Kubernetes, Linux support, Windows support.
ShareXLinkedInRedditWhatsAppEmail

Related pages

More on Prometheus

More on Pulumi

Keep looking

Other head to heads