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Cloudinary vs Portainer: Pricing Comparison 2026

Side-by-side pricing comparison of Cloudinary and Portainer. See all plans, features, and costs at a glance.

Bottom line: Portainer starts at $10/mo, making it $89/mo cheaper than Cloudinary ($99/mo). Cloudinary offers a free plan.

Last updated: March 16, 2026

Data compiled by Arthur Jacquemin
Updated March 16, 2026
Try Cloudinary freeTry Portainer free

Cloudinary vs Portainer: Quick Pricing Facts

FeatureCloudinaryPortainer
Starting Price$99/mo$10/mo
Number of Plans44
Free TierYesYes
Pricing Modelfreemiumfreemium
Annual DiscountN/AN/A

Portainer is the more affordable option, starting at $10/mo compared to Cloudinary's $99/mo. Both are Hosting & Infra tools with 8 combined pricing plans and 59 features compared. At comparable tiers, the monthly price difference is $10.

Both tools offer free plans, making them accessible for teams on a budget.

Review the detailed tier-by-tier comparison above to see exactly which features are included at each price point and find the best fit for your Hosting & Infra needs.

Pricing Plans
Cloudinary
Cloudinary
Try it free
Portainer
Portainer
Try it free
Tier 1
FreePopular
$0/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Upload widget, API, and search
  • Remote fetch, auto-backup, and revision tracking
  • Image and video transformations
  • Video transcoding and adaptive streaming
  • High performance delivery through a CDN
  • Support — forums, tickets, and email
  • Access to free add-ons
  • Upload widget, API, and search
  • Remote fetch, auto-backup, and revision tracking
  • Image and video transformations
  • Video transcoding and adaptive streaming
  • High performance delivery through a CDN
  • Support — forums, tickets, and email
  • Access to free add-ons
  • Access to MCP servers
Start with Free
Free
$0/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Basic features
  • Community support
Start with Free
Tier 2
PlusPopular
$99/month
Includes
  • Backup to your own S3 bucket
  • Auto-tagging based search
  • Access to free and paid add-ons
  • Expedited support
  • Allowlist/Blocklist asset access
  • Video Bandwidth Boost 2:1
  • Role-based multi-user administration
  • Backup to your own S3 bucket
  • Auto-tagging based search
  • Access to free and paid add-ons
  • Expedited support
  • Allowlist/Blocklist asset access
  • Video Bandwidth Boost 2:1
  • Role-based multi-user administration
Start with Plus
ProPopular
$10/monthCheapest
$8 / year
Includes
  • Advanced features
  • Priority support
  • Team collaboration
Start with Pro
Tier 3
AdvancedPopular
$249/month
Includes
  • Custom domain (CNAME) support
  • Optional HTTPS SSL Certificate
  • Authentication Options
  • Custom domain (CNAME) support
  • Optional HTTPS SSL Certificate
  • Authentication Options
Start with Advanced
Business
$25/monthCheapest
$21 / year
Includes
  • All Pro features
  • Custom integrations
  • Enhanced security
Start with Business
Tier 4
EnterprisePopular
Custom pricing
Includes
  • Backup to your own S3 bucket
  • Auto-tagging based search
  • Access to free and paid add-ons
  • Expedited support
  • Allowlist/Blocklist asset access
  • Video Bandwidth Boost 2:1
  • Role-based multi-user administration
  • Security and compliance review
  • Multi-CDN and enterprise grade infrastructure
  • Enterprise SLAs and support
  • Designated customer success manager
  • Custom contracts and invoicing
  • User management (SSO, provisioning API)
Start with Enterprise
Enterprise
Custom pricing
Includes
  • Custom solutions
  • Dedicated support
  • Scalability options
Start with Enterprise

Swipe to compare plans →

Cloudinary

Cloud-based image and video management platform

View all Cloudinary plans

Portainer

Container management platform with GUI for Docker and K8s

View all Portainer plans

Which Should You Choose?

Choose Cloudinary if:

  • •You prefer Cloudinary's free tier features—Upload widget, API, and search, Remote fetch, auto-backup, and revision tracking
  • •You want more features built-in—Cloudinary offers 37 additional features across its plans
  • •Cloudinary's freemium pricing lets you match exact team size without tier gaps

Choose Portainer if:

  • •You want lower per-user costs—Portainer starts at $10/mo, saving $89/mo compared to Cloudinary at $99/mo
  • •You prefer Portainer's free tier features—Basic features, Community support
  • •You want Portainer's approach to incremental feature unlocking across its 4 pricing tiers

Both Cloudinary and Portainer offer free plans [1], eliminating cost barriers for evaluation. This means you can test both tools thoroughly with your actual workflows before any financial commitment. The free tiers differ in scope: Cloudinary includes 15 features, while Portainer includes 2 features. Evaluate which free tier matches your evaluation needs before deciding to upgrade. Your best approach is to activate both free trials and evaluate which tool's workflow, integrations, and user experience align better with your team's needs before committing to paid plans.

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Frequently Asked Questions: Cloudinary vs Portainer

Which is cheaper, Cloudinary or Portainer?
As of March 2026, Portainer starts at a lower price point. Cloudinary starts at $99/mo while Portainer starts at $10/mo. However, the best value depends on the features you need at each tier.
How many pricing plans does Cloudinary have vs Portainer?
Cloudinary offers 4 pricing plans, while Portainer offers 4 plans. More plans typically means more flexibility to match your exact needs and budget.
Does Cloudinary or Portainer offer a free plan?
Yes, both Cloudinary and Portainer offer free plans. Compare the feature limits of each free tier to see which better fits your use case before upgrading.
Can I save money by paying annually for Cloudinary or Portainer?
Both Cloudinary and Portainer offer annual billing options. Check each plan's yearly pricing for potential savings compared to monthly billing.
What is the most popular Cloudinary plan?
The Free plan is Cloudinary's most popular tier, priced at Free. Key features include Upload widget, API, and search, Remote fetch, auto-backup, and revision tracking, Image and video transformations.
What is the most popular Portainer plan?
The Pro plan is Portainer's most popular tier, priced at $10/mo. Key features include Advanced features, Priority support, Team collaboration.
Does Cloudinary or Portainer offer custom enterprise pricing?
Yes, both Cloudinary and Portainer offer custom enterprise pricing tiers with quote-based pricing. Contact each vendor for a tailored quote.

Sources

  1. Cloudinary Official Pricing— Vendor pricing page
  2. Portainer Official Pricing— Vendor pricing page

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