Directus
Dub
| Feature | Directus | Dub |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $99/mo | Free / from $24/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.4 / 5 | 4.4 / 5 |
| Best For | developers, agencies, content-teams, enterprise-backends | marketers, creators, saas-companies, agencies |
| Founded | 2016 | 2022 |
| Auto Generated Apis | ✓ | ✗ |
| Admin Panel | ✓ | ✗ |
| Roles And Permissions | ✓ | ✗ |
| Flows Automation | ✓ | ✗ |
| File Management | ✓ | ✗ |
| Translations | ✓ | ✗ |
| Short Links | ✗ | ✓ |
| Analytics | ✗ | ✓ |
| Qr Codes | ✗ | ✓ |
| Custom Domains | ✗ | ✓ |
| Api | ✗ | ✓ |
| Team Management | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Directus Pros
- Works with existing databases
- Beautiful admin interface
- REST + GraphQL APIs auto-generated
- Fully self-hostable
✗ Directus Cons
- Cloud pricing jumps to $99/mo
- Complex features require developer knowledge
- Documentation could be better organized
✓ Dub Pros
- Open-source
- Beautiful analytics
- Custom domains
- QR code generation
✗ Dub Cons
- Limited links on free plan
- Newer platform
- Fewer integrations than Bitly
The Verdict
Directus is built for developers and agencies, with a focus on auto-generated-apis and admin-panel. Dub targets marketers and creators and leads with short-links and analytics.
On pricing, Dub is the clear winner for budget-conscious users — starting at $24/mo compared to $99/mo for Directus. That $75/mo difference adds up quickly for growing teams.
Both offer free plans, so you can test each with your real workflow before committing to a subscription.
Both tools are a solid fit for agencies — in those cases, the decision often comes down to workflow style and how your team prefers to organize work.
This is a genuinely close comparison. If you can, sign up for both free trials (where available) and run a one-week test with your actual team tasks before deciding.