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APIs · head to head

REST Client VSCode vs Steampipe

REST Client VSCode logo

REST Client VSCode

APIs

VSCode extension for making HTTP requests and testing REST APIs

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Steampipe logo

Steampipe

Developer Tools

Query cloud APIs, SaaS tools and code with SQL, with no extract or load step

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: REST Client VSCode limited to Visual Studio Code; not available as a standalone application; Steampipe aGPL-3.0 across all four engines is a procurement blocker at organisations that ban the licence outright, and the network clause reaches any internal portal or service that puts a web interface in front of it.
  • They diverge on capability: REST Client VSCode covers REST Client, Steampipe covers SQL over live APIs.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which REST Client VSCode and Steampipe actually diverge.

Attributes where REST Client VSCode and Steampipe differ
AttributeREST Client VSCodeSteampipe
Pricing modelUnknownOpen source, with paid hosting through Turbot Pipes
PlatformsWindows, macOS, LinuxmacOS, Linux, Windows, Docker, Web
CategoryAPIsDeveloper Tools
Founded2016Unknown

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 REST Client VSCode

  • REST Client
  • HTTP requests
  • Response viewing
  • VSCode
  • Environment variables
  • Custom headers
  • VSCode extension support

Only in Steampipe

  • SQL over live APIs
  • Wide plugin set
  • Embedded Postgres
  • Compliance benchmarks
  • Joins across providers
  • Hosted option

What people use each for

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

REST Client VSCode

  • API Developmentnot Steampipe
  • API Gatewaynot Steampipe
  • API Testingnot Steampipe
  • API Documentationnot Steampipe
  • Microservicesnot Steampipe

Steampipe

  • Security teams answering posture questions against live cloud accounts rather than a nightly exportnot REST Client VSCode
  • Compliance evidence gathering where the answer must reflect the account at the moment it is askednot REST Client VSCode
  • Inventory and drift questions spanning several cloud providers in one querynot REST Client VSCode
  • Engineers who would rather write SQL than learn each provider command line toolnot REST Client VSCode

Where each one falls short

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

REST Client VSCode

  • Limited to Visual Studio Code; not available as a standalone application
  • No support for WebSocket, gRPC, or other advanced protocols
  • No cloud sync or team server features; requires Git-based workflow

Steampipe

  • AGPL-3.0 across all four engines is a procurement blocker at organisations that ban the licence outright, and the network clause reaches any internal portal or service that puts a web interface in front of it.
  • Dashboards, benchmarks and mods were removed from Steampipe entirely at version 1.0 in October 2024 and now live in a separate product, so pre-2024 documentation and tutorials describe commands that no longer exist.
  • Live querying is bound by cloud provider API rate limits and keeps no persistent store by default, which is why a separate DuckDB-backed product exists for log volumes and why large accounts return slowly.
  • The company is fifteen people and bootstrapped, maintaining four command line tools plus a hosted service plus two further products, and the newer tools have thin community traction relative to that surface area.
  • Hosted tiers include only three users regardless of tier, with additional Enterprise users charged separately, so a team of thirty costs an order of magnitude more than the headline figure before compute and storage are counted.

Pricing, plan by plan

REST Client VSCode

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the REST Client VSCode review.

Steampipe

Free
  • Steampipe CLIFree
    • AGPL-3.0
    • All plugins
    • No user or query limits
  • Pipes DeveloperFree
    • One user
    • 400 compute minutes
    • 3GB storage
  • Pipes Team$49/month
    • Three users
    • 2,000 compute minutes
    • 20GB storage
  • Pipes Enterprise$249/month
    • Three users
    • 10,000 compute minutes
    • 100GB storage

Which should you pick?

Choose REST Client VSCode if

  • You need rest client.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, macOS, Linux.
  • You also want http requests.
REST Client VSCode review

Choose Steampipe if

  • You need sql over live apis.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on macOS, Linux, Windows, Docker, Web.
  • You also want wide plugin set.
Steampipe review

Questions people ask

Is REST Client VSCode or Steampipe better?
Neither clearly leads. REST Client VSCode starts at Free and Steampipe at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, REST Client VSCode or Steampipe?
REST Client VSCode starts at Free and Steampipe at Free.
Does REST Client VSCode or Steampipe run on more platforms?
REST Client VSCode runs on Windows, macOS, Linux. Steampipe runs on macOS, Linux, Windows, Docker, Web.
Can I use REST Client VSCode for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is REST Client VSCode best used for?
REST Client VSCode is most often used for api development, api gateway, api testing, api documentation. Of those, api development and api gateway are not what Steampipe is typically brought in for.
What can REST Client VSCode do that Steampipe cannot?
REST Client VSCode covers REST Client, HTTP requests, Response viewing, VSCode. Steampipe covers SQL over live APIs, Wide plugin set, Embedded Postgres, Compliance benchmarks.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

REST Client VSCode: How much does REST Client VSCode cost?

REST Client VSCode is completely free and open source. It is available on the Visual Studio Code Marketplace with no subscription or licensing fees.

Source
Steampipe: When did Steampipe become AGPL?

May 2021, about four months after the project went public. It is a settled licence rather than a recent change, and predates the Business Source Licence wave it is often confused with.

REST Client VSCode: What authentication methods does REST Client support?

REST Client supports Basic Auth, Digest Auth, SSL certificates, Azure AD, and AWS Signature v4 authentication for API requests.

Source
Steampipe: Where did the dashboards and benchmarks go?

Into Powerpipe. They were deprecated in March 2024 and removed from Steampipe at version 1.0 in October 2024, so the check, dashboard, mod and variable commands are gone.

REST Client VSCode: Can I save and manage multiple requests?

Yes. REST Client supports multiple requests per file using ### delimiters, request history with auto-save, environment variables for different configurations, and code snippet generation for multiple programming languages.

Source
Steampipe: Is it fast on a large cloud estate?

Not always. Queries call provider APIs at request time, so rate limits rather than query planning set the pace, and there is no persistent store by default.

REST Client VSCode: How do teams collaborate with REST Client?

REST Client requests are stored as text files that can be version-controlled in Git repositories. Teams collaborate by sharing requests through Git, making the API specs part of the codebase.

Source
Steampipe: Does the AGPL affect internal use?

Running it internally for your own analysis is fine. Putting a web interface in front of it that other people use is where the network clause becomes a question for your legal team.

REST Client VSCode: What protocols does REST Client support?

REST Client primarily supports HTTP/HTTPS and GraphQL. It does not support WebSocket, gRPC, or other advanced protocols available in desktop clients like Insomnia.

Source
Steampipe: Is a bootstrapped vendor a risk?

It cuts both ways. There is no investor pressure toward a licence change or an exit, and there are also fifteen people supporting a large product surface.

REST Client VSCode: Is there cloud sync for REST Client requests?

No. REST Client has no built-in cloud sync or team server features. All collaboration and sharing relies on Git repository management.

Source
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