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Software · head to head

Pulumi vs Contabo

Pulumi logo

Pulumi

Software

Modern infrastructure as code using programming languages

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Contabo logo

Contabo

Software

Affordable high-performance VPS hosting

From
€4.5/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Pulumi has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Pulumi the free Individual plan allows one user and one concurrent stack update; Contabo fully unmanaged infrastructure requires all setup and maintenance by customer
  • They diverge on capability: Pulumi covers Multi-language support, Contabo covers VPS Hosting.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Pulumi and Contabo actually diverge.

Attributes where Pulumi and Contabo differ
AttributePulumiContabo
Starting priceFree€4.5/month
Pricing modelfreemiumUnknown
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsLinux, Windows, Mac, ApiLinux, Windows
Founded20172003

Identical on both: 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 Contabo

  • VPS Hosting
  • Dedicated Servers
  • Object Storage
  • Snapshots
  • DDoS Protection
  • Custom ISO
  • Multiple Locations
  • SSD Storage

Both cover

  • Kubernetes
  • Cloud deployment

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 Contabo
  • Managing Pulumi state and secrets in a hosted backend instead of self-managed storagenot Contabo
  • Policy, drift detection and deployment workflows for platform engineering teamsnot Contabo

Contabo

  • Web hostingnot Pulumi
  • Game serversnot Pulumi
  • Development environmentsnot Pulumi
  • VPN serversnot 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

Contabo

  • Fully unmanaged infrastructure requires all setup and maintenance by customer
  • No formal SLA with financial compensation for downtime violations

Pricing, plan by plan

Pulumi

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

Contabo

€4.5/month
  • Cloud VPS$4.5/month
    • 4 vCPU
    • 8 GB RAM
    • 100 GB SSD
  • Cloud VDS$39/month
    • Dedicated cores
    • 24 GB RAM
    • 180 GB NVMe
  • Dedicated Server$149/month
    • AMD CPU
    • 64 GB RAM
    • 1 TB NVMe

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 Contabo if

  • You need vps hosting.
  • You work on Linux, Windows.
  • You also want dedicated servers.
Contabo review

Questions people ask

Is Pulumi or Contabo better?
Neither clearly leads. Pulumi starts at Free and Contabo at €4.5/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Pulumi or Contabo?
Pulumi has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Pulumi and €4.5/month for Contabo.
Does Pulumi or Contabo run on more platforms?
Pulumi runs on Linux, Windows, Mac, Api. Contabo runs on Linux, Windows.
Can I use Pulumi for free?
Yes. Pulumi has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Contabo starts at €4.5/month.
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 Contabo is typically brought in for.
What can Pulumi do that Contabo cannot?
Pulumi covers Multi-language support, Multi-cloud, State management, Secrets management. Contabo covers VPS Hosting, Dedicated Servers, Object Storage, Snapshots. Both handle Kubernetes, Cloud deployment.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Contabo: What is the base pricing for Contabo VPS?

Contabo Cloud VPS starts at EUR 4.50 per month (approximately $4.95 USD) with 4 vCPU cores and 8 GB RAM. Prices scale up to EUR 39+ per month for dedicated performance VPS with higher specs.

Source
Contabo: Does Contabo raise prices at renewal?

No. Unlike many hosting providers, Contabo does not increase renewal prices. The promotional price you get at sign-up is locked in for future renewals.

Source
Contabo: What data center locations does Contabo offer?

Contabo operates 9 global data center regions including multiple EU locations, US East/Central/West Coast, United Kingdom, India, Singapore, Japan, and Australia.

Source
Contabo: Does Contabo provide managed services?

No. Contabo VPS is fully unmanaged. You handle all setup, security patching, and system maintenance. Managed hosting adds 2 hours per month of dedicated support for a fee.

Source
Contabo: What is Contabo's uptime guarantee?

Contabo maintains a 99.996% uptime guarantee across all plans. The platform includes unlimited traffic and free DDoS protection.

Source
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