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Head-to-head · Infrastructure as Code Tools

Terraform vs Pulumi

  • Updated Oct 2026
  • Both researched from official sources
  • 5 checks side by side
Higher score Terraform #1 in Infrastructure as Code Tools 9.4/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 4 of 4 features Visit Terraform
Pulumi #2 in Infrastructure as Code Tools 9.2/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 4 of 4 features Visit Pulumi

Terraform leads on 0 checks, Pulumi on 0, and 5 are even. Who comes out ahead on the 5 yes/no, price and count checks where we have data for both products. The editor score weighs everything else too.

Our verdict

  • Highest scoreTerraform · 9.4/10
  • Free planboth

Terraform scores higher on our rubric for infrastructure as code tools: 9.4 against 9.2 out of 10; our editors rank them #1 and #2.

On configuration language, Pulumi gives you General-purpose language where Terraform offers Hcl.

Terraform is the better fit for broad, mature multi-cloud IaC teams. Pulumi is the better fit for teams wanting IaC in familiar languages.

  • Terraform fits best

    Broad, mature multi-cloud IaC teams

  • Pulumi fits best

    Teams wanting IaC in familiar languages

Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.

Side by side

Feature Terraform 9.4/10 Visit ↗ Pulumi 9.2/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score 9.4 9.2
Ranking #1 in Infrastructure as Code Tools #2 in Infrastructure as Code Tools
Best for Broad, mature multi-cloud IaC teams Teams wanting IaC in familiar languages
Pricing model Free plan + paid Free plan + paid
Starting price — $40/mo
Free plan ✓ ✓
Free trial — —
Deployment Cloud, Self-hosted Cloud, Self-hosted
Platforms Web, Windows, macOS, Linux Web, Windows, macOS, Linux
Support Docs Tickets, Community, Docs
Compliance SSO/SAML SOC 2, ISO 27001, PCI DSS, SSO/SAML
Built for Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features Terraform 4/4 · Pulumi 4/4
Policy as code ✓ ✓
Drift detection ✓ ✓
Import existing resources ✓ ✓
Self-hosted execution ✓ ✓
Specs
Configuration language Hcl General-purpose language
Supported clouds Amazon Web Services, Azure, Google Cloud Platform, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, Kubernetes
State management Both Both
Our review
Pros
  • Broad provider coverage across major clouds, Docker, SaaS, and APIs
  • Declarative plan-and-apply workflow with state, locking, import, and drift detection
  • Governance options including Sentinel or OPA policy enforcement
  • Supports TypeScript, Python, Go, Java, .NET, JavaScript, and YAML
  • Multi-cloud provisioning with managed or self-managed state backends
  • Includes policy as code, drift detection, import, secrets, and CI/CD
Cons
  • Paid HCP Terraform plans charge per managed resource
  • Advanced policy, security, cost, and SSO features start with Standard
  • Self-managed deployment and premium support are limited to Enterprise
  • Team pricing starts at $40 per month for up to 10 users
  • Enterprise features require a $400-per-month plan
  • Platform coverage is narrower than Terraform's
Our verdict

Terraform is an infrastructure-as-code tool for building, changing, and versioning infrastructure through declarative configuration. It is designed for infrastructure and platform teams managing cloud, private datacenter, SaaS, and…

Read the review →

Pulumi is an open-source infrastructure-as-code platform for developers, platform engineers, and DevOps teams. It lets teams define and manage cloud infrastructure with TypeScript, JavaScript, Python, Go, .NET, Java, or YAML rather than…

Read the review →
  1. TerraformInfrastructure as Code Tools 9.4Free plan
  2. PulumiInfrastructure as Code Tools 9.2Free plan

Strengths and trade-offs

  • Terraform — where it wins

    • Broad provider coverage across major clouds, Docker, SaaS, and APIs
    • Declarative plan-and-apply workflow with state, locking, import, and drift detection
    • Governance options including Sentinel or OPA policy enforcement

    Where it doesn't

    • Paid HCP Terraform plans charge per managed resource
    • Advanced policy, security, cost, and SSO features start with Standard
    • Self-managed deployment and premium support are limited to Enterprise

  • Pulumi — where it wins

    • Supports TypeScript, Python, Go, Java, .NET, JavaScript, and YAML
    • Multi-cloud provisioning with managed or self-managed state backends
    • Includes policy as code, drift detection, import, secrets, and CI/CD

    Where it doesn't

    • Team pricing starts at $40 per month for up to 10 users
    • Enterprise features require a $400-per-month plan
    • Platform coverage is narrower than Terraform's

More comparisons

All infrastructure as code tools comparisons → · Full ranking →

Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026

Last updated · How we research and update