HCP Terraform vs Scalr
SEPT 2026 auditA comparison of HCP Terraform and Scalr built from values read directly from each provider's own documentation, with the source recorded against every figure.
The short answer
Choose 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.
Editorial · Palash Bagchi · approved
Choose 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.
Editorial · Palash Bagchi · approved
Consider something else if…
- 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.
- 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.
5 sourced criteria separate them — see where, with sources, below.
Pick the criteria you care about. The chart counts how many of them lean toward each provider — the same read as scanning the bars below, just totalled for the ones you chose.
HCP Terraform 0
Scalr 0
At a glance.
| Criterion | HCP Terraform | Scalr |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | ||
| 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. |
| Observability | ||
| 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 |
| Auth | ||
| 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.
- Scalr
- 50 runs a month with all core features, five concurrent runs, and no time limit or card. The plans differ only in volume.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Manage your HCP Terraform plan ↗
“Free plans are limited to 500 managed resources. Verify that you have 500 or fewer managed resources before downgrading.”
Read 2026-09-15 · official docs
- Scalr Pricing ↗
“Both start with five concurrent runs by default as of September 2026, an”
Read 2026-09-15 · official 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.
- 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.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Estimate HCP Terraform cost ↗
“1,000 managed resources × $0.0001359 = $0.14”
Read 2026-09-15 · official docs
- Scalr Pricing ↗
“The Free plan covers up to 50 runs per month. Business is usage-based at $0.99 per run with volume discounts (for example, 100 runs is $99 per month).”
Read 2026-09-15 · official 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.
- 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.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Estimate HCP Terraform cost ↗
“HashiCorp calculates your bill depending on the number of resources the plaform manages per hour.”
Read 2026-09-15 · official docs
- Scalr Pricing ↗
“Simple Pricing Predictable pricing. No per-user fees, no per-resource charges.”
Read 2026-09-15 · official pricing
Self-hostable
- HCP Terraform
- Supported — As Terraform Enterprise, a separate self-hosted distribution of the same application
- Scalr
- Limited — Self-hosted agents, unlimited on both plans; the control plane is Scalr's
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Terraform Enterprise ↗
“Terraform Enterprise is a self-hosted instance of HCP Terraform with features like audit logging and SAML single sign-on.”
Read 2026-09-15 · official docs
- Scalr Pricing ↗
“Concurrency No extra charge No extra charge Self-hosted agents Unlimited Unlimited Users Unlimited Unlimited Environments Unlimited”
Read 2026-09-15 · official 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.
- 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.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Audit trails API reference ↗
“Note: Audit trails are available in HCP Terraform Standard and Premium editions.”
Read 2026-09-15 · official docs
- Scalr Pricing ↗
“the full set of core features such as drift detection, policy enforcement, and the module and provider registries”
Read 2026-09-15 · official pricing
When these numbers change, hear about it. Sources are re-checked monthly; a repricing goes out as a short note.
Documented by only one.
These criteria are published by one provider and not the other. An absence here means we have not found a source, not that the feature is missing.
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.