# HCP Terraform vs Scalr

Canonical: https://inetgeek.com/compare/hcp-terraform-vs-scalr/

Every value below is read from HCP Terraform's and Scalr's own documentation. See https://inetgeek.com/methodology/ for how.

## At a glance

| Criterion | HCP Terraform | Scalr |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| What the free plan includes | 500 managed resources. The cap is stated as a condition of downgrading rather than as a description of the plan — an organisation above it cannot move down to free — and the documentation names no other free allowance, so runs, users and concurrency are not known to be capped from this page. | 50 runs a month with all core features, five concurrent runs, and no time limit or card. The plans differ only in volume. |
| Entry paid plan | $0.0001359 per managed resource per hour on the Essentials plan, with no monthly plan fee to clear first. HashiCorp's own worked example is 1,000 resources held continuously for a month, which it totals at $97.85. | $0.99 per run past the free 50 a month, with volume discounts — Scalr's own example is 100 runs for $99. There is no monthly plan fee to clear first. |
| Pricing model | Per managed resource, per hour. The charge follows the peak resource count within each hour, so resources created and destroyed inside one hour are still billed for it: HashiCorp's own example bills an hour at a peak of 2,000 after 1,000 were added and 500 destroyed. Contract plans are offered at lower rates for larger organisations. | Per run, and nothing else — the page states there are no per-user fees and no per-resource charges, which is the distinction from Pulumi and from the seat-based tools it competes with. Both plans start with five concurrent runs. |
| Self-hostable | Supported — As Terraform Enterprise, a separate self-hosted distribution of the same application | Limited — Self-hosted agents, unlimited on both plans; the control plane is Scalr's |
| Audit logs | Yes, on the Standard and Premium editions, with 14 days of retention, read through a dedicated Audit Trails API that needs an organisation or audit trail token rather than a user token. The documentation disagrees with itself on the tier: the audit trails reference says Standard and Premium, while the plan-management page lists audit logging among Premium-only features. Recorded as the audit page states it. Not available on self-hosted Terraform Enterprise. | Not stated on the pricing page. Scalr lists drift detection, policy enforcement and the module and provider registries among its core features and does not mention an audit trail there. |

## Where they differ

### What the free plan includes

- HCP Terraform: 500 managed resources. The cap is stated as a condition of downgrading rather than as a description of the plan — an organisation above it cannot move down to free — and the documentation names no other free allowance, so runs, users and concurrency are not known to be capped from this page. ([source](https://developer.hashicorp.com/terraform/cloud-docs/overview/manage-plan))
- Scalr: 50 runs a month with all core features, five concurrent runs, and no time limit or card. The plans differ only in volume. ([source](https://scalr.com/pricing))

### Entry paid plan

- HCP Terraform: $0.0001359 per managed resource per hour on the Essentials plan, with no monthly plan fee to clear first. HashiCorp's own worked example is 1,000 resources held continuously for a month, which it totals at $97.85. ([source](https://developer.hashicorp.com/terraform/cloud-docs/overview/estimate-cost))
- Scalr: $0.99 per run past the free 50 a month, with volume discounts — Scalr's own example is 100 runs for $99. There is no monthly plan fee to clear first. ([source](https://scalr.com/pricing))

### Pricing model

- HCP Terraform: Per managed resource, per hour. The charge follows the peak resource count within each hour, so resources created and destroyed inside one hour are still billed for it: HashiCorp's own example bills an hour at a peak of 2,000 after 1,000 were added and 500 destroyed. Contract plans are offered at lower rates for larger organisations. ([source](https://developer.hashicorp.com/terraform/cloud-docs/overview/estimate-cost))
- Scalr: Per run, and nothing else — the page states there are no per-user fees and no per-resource charges, which is the distinction from Pulumi and from the seat-based tools it competes with. Both plans start with five concurrent runs. ([source](https://scalr.com/pricing))

### Self-hostable

- HCP Terraform: Supported — As Terraform Enterprise, a separate self-hosted distribution of the same application ([source](https://developer.hashicorp.com/terraform/enterprise))
- Scalr: Limited — Self-hosted agents, unlimited on both plans; the control plane is Scalr's ([source](https://scalr.com/pricing))

### Audit logs

- HCP Terraform: Yes, on the Standard and Premium editions, with 14 days of retention, read through a dedicated Audit Trails API that needs an organisation or audit trail token rather than a user token. The documentation disagrees with itself on the tier: the audit trails reference says Standard and Premium, while the plan-management page lists audit logging among Premium-only features. Recorded as the audit page states it. Not available on self-hosted Terraform Enterprise. ([source](https://developer.hashicorp.com/terraform/cloud-docs/api-docs/audit-trails))
- Scalr: Not stated on the pricing page. Scalr lists drift detection, policy enforcement and the module and provider registries among its core features and does not mention an audit trail there. ([source](https://scalr.com/pricing))

## Which should you choose?

Pick HCP Terraform if Running the reference implementation with a bill that starts at nothing and then tracks inventory: 500 managed resources free, and $0.0001359 per resource per hour after that with no plan fee to clear first.

Pick Scalr if A bill that follows activity rather than inventory: $0.99 a run past 50 free a month, no per-user fee and no per-resource charge, with unlimited users and environments on both plans.

Consider something else: HCP Terraform — Your infrastructure churns. Billing follows the peak resource count within each hour, so a preview environment built and destroyed inside that hour is charged as though it had run the whole time — Scalr's per-run price and Spacelift's per-worker price both leave ephemeral estates alone.

Consider something else: Scalr — You need SSO or an audit trail on paper. Scalr's pricing page lists drift detection, policy enforcement and the registries among core features and names neither — where Spacelift and Pulumi both put them in a named tier.

## Documented by only one

- SAML single sign-on: HCP Terraform: Supported — SAML 2.0, both SP- and IdP-initiated, with just-in-time provisioning

## Questions this comparison answers

**Entry paid plan: HCP Terraform or Scalr?**

HCP Terraform: $0.0001359 per managed resource per hour on the Essentials plan, with no monthly plan fee to clear first. HashiCorp's own worked example is 1,000 resources held continuously for a month, which it totals at $97.85.
Scalr: $0.99 per run past the free 50 a month, with volume discounts — Scalr's own example is 100 runs for $99. There is no monthly plan fee to clear first.

**Should I choose HCP Terraform or Scalr?**

Pick HCP Terraform if Running the reference implementation with a bill that starts at nothing and then tracks inventory: 500 managed resources free, and $0.0001359 per resource per hour after that with no plan fee to clear first.
Pick Scalr if A bill that follows activity rather than inventory: $0.99 a run past 50 free a month, no per-user fee and no per-resource charge, with unlimited users and environments on both plans.