Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Pulumi VS Helm.sh

Compare Pulumi VS Helm.sh and see what are their differences

Pulumi logo Pulumi

Cloud Infrastructure for any cloud using languages you already know and love.

Helm.sh logo Helm.sh

The Kubernetes Package Manager
  • Pulumi Landing page
    Landing page //
    2019-01-06

Pulumi lets engineers deliver infrastructure as code faster, using any programming language. The Pulumi Platform enables customers to manage 10x more resources at lower cost than traditional tools, while Pulumi Insights unlocks analytics and search across cloud infrastructure, and enables novel AI-driven infrastructure automation.

  • Helm.sh Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-07-30

Pulumi features and specs

  • Multi-Language Support
    Pulumi supports multiple programming languages, such as JavaScript, TypeScript, Python, Go, and .NET, allowing developers to use familiar languages and tools to define and manage cloud resources.
  • Declarative and Imperative
    Pulumi combines both declarative infrastructure as code with imperative logic, enabling greater flexibility in how cloud resources can be managed and orchestrated.
  • Supports Modern Cloud Architectures
    Pulumi integrates well with modern cloud frameworks and architectures, such as serverless, containers, and Kubernetes, making it suitable for a wide range of cloud-native applications.
  • State Management
    Pulumi manages state by default using Pulumi Service backend, which provides features like history, auditing, state locking, and secret management, or allows using other backends like a local file or cloud storage.
  • Rich Ecosystem
    Pulumi provides a rich ecosystem of pre-built packages and integrations with popular cloud providers (AWS, Azure, GCP, etc.) and tools, facilitating faster and more reliable cloud deployments.
  • CrossGuard Policy as Code
    Pulumi offers CrossGuard for implementing policy as code, allowing organizations to define compliance and security policies using familiar languages and enforcing them throughout the deployment process.

Possible disadvantages of Pulumi

  • Learning Curve
    As Pulumi uses general-purpose programming languages to define infrastructure, it may have a steeper learning curve for those unfamiliar with programming concepts compared to traditional YAML or JSON-based IaC tools.
  • Complexity in Large Projects
    Managing large and complex infrastructure projects might be challenging due to the imperative nature of the code, which can lead to more intricate and harder-to-read scripts.
  • Dependency Management
    Using general-purpose languages introduces dependency management concerns, requiring developers to manage and resolve dependencies which may not be as straightforward as with other declarative IaC tools.
  • Limited Support for Niche Services
    While Pulumi supports major cloud services, it may have limited support or slower updates for niche or very new services offered by cloud providers.
  • Vendor Lock-In Risk
    Some parts of Pulumi's ecosystem, particularly when leveraging its state management and service backend, might introduce a degree of vendor lock-in, making migrations to alternative tools more complex.

Helm.sh features and specs

  • Ease of Use
    Helm simplifies the deployment and management of Kubernetes applications by providing a package manager format that is easy to understand and use. It abstracts complex Kubernetes configurations into simple YAML files called Charts.
  • Reusable Configurations
    Helm Charts allow for reusable Kubernetes configurations, making it easier to maintain and share best-practice templates across different environments and teams.
  • Versioning
    Helm supports versioning of Helm Charts, enabling rollbacks to previous application states, which is critical for managing updates and rollbacks in production environments.
  • Extensibility
    Helm is highly extensible with Plugins and the ability to use community-contributed Charts. This extensibility facilitates customizations and leveraging the community for improved and varied functionality.
  • Templating Engine
    Helm Charts support Go templating, which allows for dynamic configuration values, making Helm Charts more flexible and powerful.
  • Broad Adoption
    Helm is widely adopted in the Kubernetes ecosystem, leading to a vast repository of pre-built Charts, extensive documentation, and strong community support.

Possible disadvantages of Helm.sh

  • Complexity
    While Helm simplifies many tasks, the templating language and Chart configurations can become complex and hard to manage, especially for large-scale applications.
  • Learning Curve
    New users of Helm may face a steep learning curve, particularly those who are not already familiar with Kubernetes concepts or YAML configuration syntax.
  • Security
    Helm's default Tiller component (used in Helm v2) had security concerns related to role-based access control (RBAC). While Helm v3 removed Tiller, previous versions may still be in use, leading to potential security risks.
  • Debugging
    Debugging issues with Helm Charts can be challenging, especially due to the abstraction and layering between the Helm template engine and the actual Kubernetes resources deployed.
  • Resource Abstraction
    Helm can sometimes abstract away too much of the Kubernetes internals, which might hinder advanced users who need fine-grained control over their deployments.
  • Dependency Management
    Managing dependencies between different Helm Charts can become cumbersome and lead to complex dependency trees that are hard to manage and debug.

Analysis of Helm.sh

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Helm is considered a good tool for managing Kubernetes applications due to its ability to streamline deployment processes, provide version control and rollback configurations, and enable easier management of complex application dependencies and configurations. It is widely adopted in the Kubernetes ecosystem and backed by a strong open-source community, which continuously contributes improvements and enhancements.

Why this product is good

  • Helm (helm.sh) is a popular package manager for Kubernetes applications that simplifies the deployment and management of applications on Kubernetes clusters. It provides users with a convenient way to package, configure, and deploy applications and dependencies, utilizing a system of charts for managing complex application architectures. This capability reduces the complexity and effort needed to maintain and update Kubernetes applications, contributing to more efficient and error-free deployments.

Recommended for

  • DevOps teams managing Kubernetes applications
  • Software engineers looking for simplified Kubernetes deployments
  • Organizations seeking more efficient CI/CD pipelines with Kubernetes
  • Teams managing complex multi-service applications with numerous dependencies
  • Kubernetes beginners who need a powerful yet accessible tool to manage deployments.

Pulumi videos

Pulumi Up(date) with Corey Quinn and Joe Duffy

More videos:

  • Review - Ep 002: How Pulumi Works
  • Review - Cloud Infrastructure as C# and F# with Pulumi - .NET South West - February 2020

Helm.sh videos

Review: Helm's Zind Is My Favorite Black Boot (Discount Available)

More videos:

  • Review - Helm Free VST/AU Synth Review
  • Review - Another Khracker From Helm - Khuraburi Review

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Pulumi and Helm.sh)
DevOps Tools
22 22%
78% 78
Developer Tools
12 12%
88% 88
Infrastructure Build Tools
Cloud Computing
15 15%
85% 85

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Helm.sh seems to be a lot more popular than Pulumi. While we know about 170 links to Helm.sh, we've tracked only 16 mentions of Pulumi. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Pulumi mentions (16)

  • What tools can help streamline cloud deployment processes?
    If you like the idea of managing infrastructure as code (IaC) but find Terraform too clunky, Pulumi might be your new best friend. - Source: dev.to / 29 days ago
  • Nuxt Deployment Guide: How to Deploy Nuxt to Cloudflare
    It uses open-source tools like SST.dev and Pulumi for deploying and managing resources (infrastructure as code). Using Cloudflare's APIs and Wrangler under the hood, so you don't have to expose access to your Cloudflare account. - Source: dev.to / 3 months ago
  • Python in DevOps: Automation, Efficiency, and Scalability
    Terraform and Pulumi automate the provisioning of cloud resources. IaC ensures consistency and eliminates manual errors when setting up infrastructure. - Source: dev.to / 5 months ago
  • Platform Engineering Abstraction: How to Scale IaC for Enterprise
    With declarative IaC, integrating external processes into infrastructure deployment often requires workarounds. Platform teams frequently combine declarative IaC with one-off scripts or API calls in their CI/CD pipelines. Tools like AWS CDK (Cloud Development Kit), CDK for Terraform, and Pulumi allow teams to generate IaC using imperative programming languages, enabling platform engineers to create infrastructure... - Source: dev.to / 8 months ago
  • How I get better feedback on my PRs (and how you can, too)
    Lang="en"> charset="utf-8"> Hello, world! Hello, world! 👋 Deployed with 💜 by new href="https://pulumi.com/">Pulumi. - Source: dev.to / almost 2 years ago
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Helm.sh mentions (170)

  • Install Red Hat Developer Hub with AI Software Templates on OpenShift
    Helm installed: brew install helm or from https://helm.sh. - Source: dev.to / about 1 month ago
  • Even more OpenTelemetry - Kubernetes special
    Docker Compose is great for demos: docker compose up, and you're good to go, but I know no organization that uses it in production. Deploying workloads to Kubernetes is much more involved than that. I've used Kubernetes for demos in the past; typing kubectl apply -f is dull fast. In addition to GitOps, which isn't feasible for demos, the two main competitors are Helm and Kustomize. I chose the former for its... - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
  • Kubernetes and Container Portability: Navigating Multi-Cloud Flexibility
    Helm Charts – An open-source solution for software deployment on top of Kubernetes. - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
  • Chart an Extensible Course with Helm
    Clicks, copies, and pasting. That's an approach to deploying your applications in Kubernetes. Anyone who's worked with Kubernetes for more than 5 minutes knows that this is not a recipe for repeatability and confidence in your setup. Good news is, you've got options when tackling this problem. The option I'm going to present below is using Helm. - Source: dev.to / 2 months ago
  • IKO - Lessons Learned (Part 1 - Helm)
    Looks like we're good to go (assuming you already have helm installed, if not install it first)! Let's install the IKO. We are going to need to tell helm where the folder with all our goodies is (that's the iris-operator folder you see above). If we were to be sitting at the chart directory you can use the command. - Source: dev.to / 3 months ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Pulumi and Helm.sh, you can also consider the following products

Terraform - Tool for building, changing, and versioning infrastructure safely and efficiently.

Kubernetes - Kubernetes is an open source orchestration system for Docker containers

AWS CloudFormation - AWS CloudFormation gives developers and systems administrators an easy way to create and manage a...

Rancher - Open Source Platform for Running a Private Container Service

Ansible - Radically simple configuration-management, application deployment, task-execution, and multi-node orchestration engine

Docker Compose - Define and run multi-container applications with Docker