Softwr

Developer Tools · head to head

RAD Studio vs Tilt

RAD Studio logo

RAD Studio

Developer Tools

Cross-platform native app development with Delphi and C++Builder

From
$2000/perpetual
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Tilt logo

Tilt

Developer Tools

Local Kubernetes development loop that rebuilds and live-updates containers on save

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Tilt has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: RAD Studio professional edition costs $2,000 for the perpetual license plus $599 for year one maintenance, totaling $2,599 before tax; Tilt docker acquired Tilt in 2022 and the team now splits its time across Compose and Docker Desktop, so feature velocity is modest and the product's long-term priority inside Docker is not guaranteed; treat it as a stable utility, not a growing platform.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which RAD Studio and Tilt actually diverge.

Attributes where RAD Studio and Tilt differ
AttributeRAD StudioTilt
Starting price$2000/perpetualFree
Pricing modelone-timeOpen source, no licence fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebLinux, macOS, Windows

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Developer Tools).

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 RAD Studio

Nothing recorded that Tilt does not also cover.

Only in Tilt

  • Live update
  • Tiltfile as code
  • Unified web UI
  • Selective rebuilds
  • Local and remote clusters
  • Resource dependencies
  • Extensions registry
  • Custom buttons and triggers

What people use each for

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

RAD Studio

  • Building Windows desktop applications with VCL componentsnot Tilt
  • Creating iOS and Android apps from shared Delphi codebasenot Tilt
  • Connecting to Oracle databases through FireDAC connectivitynot Tilt
  • Building REST web services that run on Linux serversnot Tilt

Tilt

  • A team of ten or more engineers whose application is fifteen microservices on Kubernetes and who currently wait on CI to test a changenot RAD Studio
  • An organisation onboarding new developers who want a single command that stands up the whole stack from a committed Tiltfilenot RAD Studio
  • A platform team giving product engineers a consistent local environment against a shared remote development clusternot RAD Studio
  • A codebase where one repository contains several services and rebuilding all of them on every edit is the main source of lost timenot RAD Studio

Where each one falls short

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

RAD Studio

  • Professional edition costs $2,000 for the perpetual license plus $599 for year one maintenance, totaling $2,599 before tax
  • Enterprise edition steps up to $3,400 license plus $1,199 maintenance, and Architect edition to $4,416 license plus $2,183 maintenance
  • The perpetual license only entitles the buyer to updates for one year; continued access to new updates and upgrades requires an annually renewable Update Subscription

Tilt

  • Docker acquired Tilt in 2022 and the team now splits its time across Compose and Docker Desktop, so feature velocity is modest and the product's long-term priority inside Docker is not guaranteed; treat it as a stable utility, not a growing platform.
  • The Tiltfile is Starlark, a Python dialect, so non-trivial setups become real programs that need reviewing and maintaining, and the person who wrote yours becomes a single point of failure.
  • Live update only works when the running container can accept synced files and restart the process; compiled languages, distroless images and read-only filesystems often force you back to a full image rebuild, which removes the main benefit.
  • It assumes Kubernetes. If your development target is plain Docker Compose or serverless functions, Tilt adds a cluster you did not need and a layer of abstraction with no payoff.
  • There is no commercial support contract, no SLA and no paid tier, so when a Kubernetes version upgrade breaks something you are dependent on GitHub issues and a Slack channel rather than a vendor you can escalate to.

Pricing, plan by plan

RAD Studio

$2000/perpetual
  • Professional Edition$2000/perpetual
    • Perpetual License
    • First year maintenance $599
    • Total $2,599 + Tax
  • Enterprise Edition$3400/perpetual
    • Perpetual License
    • First year maintenance $1,199
    • Total $4,599 + Tax
  • Architect Edition$4416/perpetual
    • Perpetual License
    • First year maintenance $2,183
    • Total $6,599 + Tax

Tilt

Free
  • TiltFree
    • Apache 2.0 licensed
    • All features, no paid tier
    • Community support via the Kubernetes Slack #tilt channel

Which should you pick?

Choose RAD Studio if

Nothing in the data separates RAD Studio from Tilt on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.

RAD Studio review

Choose Tilt if

  • You need live update.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows.
  • You also want tiltfile as code.
Tilt review

Questions people ask

Is RAD Studio or Tilt better?
Neither clearly leads. RAD Studio starts at $2000/perpetual and Tilt at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, RAD Studio or Tilt?
Tilt has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $2000/perpetual for RAD Studio and Free for Tilt.
Does RAD Studio or Tilt run on more platforms?
RAD Studio runs on Web. Tilt runs on Linux, macOS, Windows.
Can I use Tilt for free?
Yes. Tilt has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. RAD Studio starts at $2000/perpetual.
What is RAD Studio best used for?
RAD Studio is most often used for building windows desktop applications with vcl components, creating ios and android apps from shared delphi codebase, connecting to oracle databases through firedac connectivity, building rest web services that run on linux servers. Of those, building windows desktop applications with vcl components and creating ios and android apps from shared delphi codebase are not what Tilt is typically brought in for.
What can RAD Studio do that Tilt cannot?
Tilt covers Live update, Tiltfile as code, Unified web UI, Selective rebuilds.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

RAD Studio: How much does RAD Studio cost?

RAD Studio uses perpetual licensing: Professional Edition $2,000 perpetual license + $599 first year maintenance ($2,599 total + tax). Enterprise Edition $3,400 license + $1,199 maintenance ($4,599 total + tax). Architect Edition $4,416 license + $2,183 maintenance ($6,599 total + tax).

Source
Tilt: Is Tilt free?

Yes, entirely. It is Apache 2.0 open source with no paid tier and no licence fee.

RAD Studio: What is the difference between RAD Studio editions?

Professional Edition ($2,599 total + tax) targets individual developers. Enterprise Edition ($4,599 total + tax) adds multi-tier app capabilities. Architect Edition ($6,599 total + tax) includes advanced database and cloud features. All three include perpetual licenses.

Source
Tilt: Who owns Tilt now?

Docker, which acquired it in May 2022. It remains open source and the repository is still actively maintained.

RAD Studio: Does RAD Studio offer Kai AI integration and discounts?

Yes, adding Kai AI to any edition provides discounts: 25% off Professional ($2,136 + tax), 30% off Enterprise ($3,394 + tax), and 40% off Architect ($4,109 + tax). This promotion is active through August 31, 2026.

Source
Tilt: Do I need a remote cluster?

No. It works against a local cluster such as kind, minikube or Docker Desktop, and also against a shared remote development cluster if your services are too heavy to run locally.

Tilt: How is it different from Skaffold?

Both automate the build-deploy loop. Tilt puts more weight on the live-update path and a multi-service dashboard; Skaffold is more configuration-driven and closer to Google's tooling.

Share

Related pages

More on RAD Studio

More on Tilt

Keep looking

Other head to heads