Heroku
Prometheus
| Feature | Heroku | Prometheus |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | From $5/mo | Free only |
| Free Plan | ✗ No | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4 / 5 | 4.5 / 5 |
| Best For | startups, prototyping, small-teams, ruby-python-node-developers | devops-engineers, sre-teams, kubernetes-users, infrastructure-teams |
| Founded | 2007 | 2012 |
| Git Deploy | ✓ | ✗ |
| Managed Postgres | ✓ | ✗ |
| Managed Redis | ✓ | ✗ |
| Add Ons | ✓ | ✗ |
| Review Apps | ✓ | ✗ |
| Pipelines | ✓ | ✗ |
| Auto Scaling | ✓ | ✗ |
| Metrics Collection | ✗ | ✓ |
| Alerting | ✗ | ✓ |
| Promql | ✗ | ✓ |
| Service Discovery | ✗ | ✓ |
| Grafana Integration | ✗ | ✓ |
| Multi Dimensional Data | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Heroku Pros
- Simplest deployment experience (git push to deploy)
- Extensive add-on marketplace for databases and services
- Great for prototyping and MVPs
- Managed Postgres and Redis included
✗ Heroku Cons
- Removed free tier in 2022
- Expensive for production workloads at scale
- Limited infrastructure customization
✓ Prometheus Pros
- Free and open-source
- Powerful query language
- Great Kubernetes integration
- Active community
✗ Prometheus Cons
- No built-in long-term storage
- Complex setup
- Steep learning curve
The Verdict
Heroku is built for startups and prototyping, with a focus on git-deploy and managed-postgres. Prometheus targets devops engineers and sre teams and leads with metrics-collection and alerting.
Prometheus uses custom enterprise pricing, while Heroku starts at $5/mo — a tangible advantage for teams with a fixed budget.
Prometheus has a free plan, which gives it a meaningful edge for individuals and small teams exploring their options. Heroku requires a paid subscription from day one.
Prometheus edges out on user ratings (4.5 vs 4). While both are well-regarded, that gap reflects real differences in user satisfaction worth considering.
Feature-wise, Heroku offers broader built-in capabilities (7 features vs 6), while Prometheus takes a more focused approach — which can mean a simpler, faster onboarding experience.
Bottom line: Prometheus has a slight overall edge — but if simplest deployment experience (git push to deploy) matters most to you, Heroku may still be the right call.