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AI · head to head

Vellum vs Helicone

Vellum logo

Vellum

AI

Personalized AI assistant with persistent memory and autonomous action-taking

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Helicone logo

Helicone

AI

Open-source LLM observability and gateway platform for AI applications

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Vellum pricing varies significantly by computational tier, making budget planning difficult; Helicone the free Hobby plan is capped at 10,000 requests per month, which teams with production traffic can exceed quickly.
  • They diverge on capability: Vellum covers Persistent AI identity, Helicone covers Request dashboard and tracking.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Vellum and Helicone actually diverge.

Attributes where Vellum and Helicone differ
AttributeVellumHelicone
Pricing modelFreemium with paid plans and pay-as-you-go creditsfreemium
PlatformsWeb, macOS, iOS, Slack, Telegram, Terminalweb, api

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (AI).

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 Vellum

  • Persistent AI identity
  • Long-term memory
  • Email automation
  • Calendar management
  • Autonomous task execution
  • Multi-device synchronization
  • Custom plugins
  • Open-source deployment

Only in Helicone

  • Request dashboard and tracking
  • Sessions and segments
  • Helicone Query Language (HQL)
  • Prompt datasets and improvement
  • Playground
  • Rate limits and alerts

What people use each for

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

Vellum

  • Personal productivity automation across email and calendarnot Helicone
  • CRM updates and pipeline managementnot Helicone
  • Expense report generation and managementnot Helicone
  • Document drafting and content creationnot Helicone
  • Meeting scheduling and calendar coordinationnot Helicone

Helicone

  • Monitoring cost and latency of production LLM applicationsnot Vellum
  • Debugging multi-step agent sessionsnot Vellum
  • Managing and iterating on prompts across a teamnot Vellum
  • Routing requests across multiple LLM providersnot Vellum

Where each one falls short

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

Vellum

  • Pricing varies significantly by computational tier, making budget planning difficult
  • Requires explicit permission for sensitive actions, limiting autonomy
  • Self-hosting option may intimidate non-technical users
  • Learning curve to develop customizations with plugins

Helicone

  • The free Hobby plan is capped at 10,000 requests per month, which teams with production traffic can exceed quickly.
  • Advanced compliance features like SOC 2 and HIPAA are only available starting at the $799/month Team plan.
  • Usage beyond the free tier is billed on top of the base subscription, adding cost unpredictability at scale.
  • On-premises deployment is restricted to the custom Enterprise tier.

Pricing, plan by plan

Vellum

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Starter credits included
    • Basic features
  • Mighty$30/month
    • 1 vCPU, 2 GiB RAM
    • 10 GB storage
    • Included usage allowance
  • Super$100/month
    • 2.5 vCPU, 5 GiB RAM
    • 30 GB storage
    • Assistant email and subdomain
  • Ultra$200/month
    • 4 vCPU, 8 GiB RAM
    • 60 GB storage
    • Assistant email and subdomain

Helicone

Free
  • HobbyFree
    • 10,000 free requests
    • 1 GB storage
    • 1 seat
  • Pro$79/month
    • 10K free requests included, usage-based beyond
    • 7-day free trial
    • Unlimited playgrounds and workspaces
  • Team$799/month
    • 5 organizations
    • SOC 2 and HIPAA compliance
    • Dedicated Slack channel access
  • Enterprise$undefined/mo
    • Custom MSAs and SAML SSO
    • On-premises deployment
    • Bulk cloud discounts

Which should you pick?

Choose Vellum if

  • You need persistent ai identity.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, macOS, iOS, Slack, Telegram, Terminal.
  • You also want long-term memory.
Vellum review

Choose Helicone if

  • You need request dashboard and tracking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, api.
  • You also want sessions and segments.
Helicone review

Questions people ask

Is Vellum or Helicone better?
Neither clearly leads. Vellum starts at Free and Helicone at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Vellum or Helicone?
Vellum starts at Free and Helicone at Free.
Does Vellum or Helicone run on more platforms?
Vellum runs on Web, macOS, iOS, Slack, Telegram, Terminal. Helicone runs on web, api.
Can I use Vellum for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Vellum best used for?
Vellum is most often used for personal productivity automation across email and calendar, crm updates and pipeline management, expense report generation and management, document drafting and content creation. Of those, personal productivity automation across email and calendar and crm updates and pipeline management are not what Helicone is typically brought in for.
What can Vellum do that Helicone cannot?
Vellum covers Persistent AI identity, Long-term memory, Email automation, Calendar management. Helicone covers Request dashboard and tracking, Sessions and segments, Helicone Query Language (HQL), Prompt datasets and improvement.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Vellum: How does Vellum protect my data privacy?

Vellum uses permission-based controls requiring explicit approval for sensitive actions. Data is encrypted and the option for self-hosting provides complete data control. Open-source deployment option allows hosting on your own infrastructure.

Source
Helicone: What does Helicone cost?

Helicone offers a free Hobby plan, a Pro plan at $79/month, a Team plan at $799/month, and custom Enterprise pricing, with usage-based charges applying beyond included request limits.

Source
Vellum: Can I use Vellum for business team collaboration?

Vellum is primarily designed as a personal assistant with persistent identity. For team collaboration, platforms like Lindy offer better multi-user features with shared credit pools and Slack workspace integration.

Source
Helicone: Is there a free plan, and what are its limits?

The free Hobby plan includes 10,000 requests per month, 1 GB of storage, 1 seat, and 1 organization, aimed at kickstarting AI projects.

Source
Vellum: What does the free tier include?

Vellum offers free starter credits to begin using the platform. Beyond that, it operates on a pay-as-you-go credit model with paid tiers starting at $30/month for increased computational resources and bundled credits.

Source
Helicone: Are there discounts available?

Helicone offers 50% off the first year for qualifying startups, discounts for non-profits, a $100 annual credit for open-source projects, and free access for students.

Source
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