Softwr

Software · head to head

Pulumi vs Chef

Pulumi logo

Pulumi

Software

Modern infrastructure as code using programming languages

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Chef logo

Chef

Software

Infrastructure automation and management

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Pulumi the free Individual plan allows one user and one concurrent stack update; Chef priced per node per year, at $59 on Business and $189 on Enterprise, so cost scales with fleet size rather than with team size
  • They diverge on capability: Pulumi covers Multi-language support, Chef covers Recipes.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Pulumi and Chef actually diverge.

Attributes where Pulumi and Chef differ
AttributePulumiChef
Pricing modelfreemiumopen-source
Founded20172009

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), platforms (Linux, Windows, Mac, Api), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

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 Pulumi

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

Only in Chef

  • Recipes
  • Cookbooks
  • Roles
  • Data bags
  • Attributes
  • Chef Server
  • Chef Infra
  • Chef Compliance

Both cover

  • AWS
  • Azure
  • GCP
  • On-premise deployment
  • Cloud deployment
  • Linux support
  • Windows support

What people use each for

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

Pulumi

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

Chef

  • Configuration management and infrastructure automation across server fleetsnot Pulumi
  • Enforcing compliance and audit policy on managed nodesnot Pulumi

Where each one falls short

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

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

Chef

  • Priced per node per year, at $59 on Business and $189 on Enterprise, so cost scales with fleet size rather than with team size
  • Tripling the price between the two published tiers puts compliance and audit features well above basic automation
  • Enterprise Plus and every self managed deployment are custom quoted with no published price

Pricing, plan by plan

Pulumi

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

Chef

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Chef Infra
    • Community support
    • Full functionality
  • Chef Automate$4000/year
    • Chef Infra
    • Compliance automation
    • Insights

Which should you pick?

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

Choose Chef if

  • You need recipes.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Mac, Api.
  • You also want cookbooks.
Chef review

Questions people ask

Is Pulumi or Chef better?
Neither clearly leads. Pulumi starts at Free and Chef at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Pulumi or Chef?
Pulumi starts at Free and Chef at Free.
Does Pulumi or Chef run on more platforms?
Both run on Linux, Windows, Mac, Api, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Pulumi for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Pulumi best used for?
Pulumi is most often used for defining cloud infrastructure as code in typescript, python, go, c# or java rather than a dsl, managing pulumi state and secrets in a hosted backend instead of self-managed storage, policy, drift detection and deployment workflows for platform engineering teams. Of those, defining cloud infrastructure as code in typescript, python, go, c# or java rather than a dsl and managing pulumi state and secrets in a hosted backend instead of self-managed storage are not what Chef is typically brought in for.
What can Pulumi do that Chef cannot?
Pulumi covers Multi-language support, Multi-cloud, State management, Secrets management. Chef covers Recipes, Cookbooks, Roles, Data bags. Both handle AWS, Azure, GCP, On-premise deployment.
ShareXLinkedInRedditWhatsAppEmail

Related pages

More on Pulumi

More on Chef

Keep looking

Other head to heads