# balena vs FreeRTOS

| Attribute | balena | FreeRTOS |
|---|---|---|
| **Vioscale score** | 63.9 (33% (low)) | 47 (29% (low)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | - | 2 |
| adoption.github_stars | - | 7,722 |
| deployment.options | `{"cloud":true}` | `{"self_hosted":true}` |
| description.long | A cloud-based platform for developing, deploying, and remotely managing fleets of Linux edge devices using container technology, with integrated security, updates, and fleet monitoring. | An open-source real-time operating system designed for resource-constrained microcontrollers and small processors. Offers kernel with multiprocessing, integrated TCP/IP networking with IPv6, and security-validated connectivity libraries for cloud integration. |
| features.capabilities | - | `{"rtos_type":"preemptive","open_source":true,"ota_updates":true,"target_class":"microcontroller/RTOS","psa_certified":true,"tls_dtls_stack":true,"device_provisioning":true,"device_management_console":true}` |
| integrations.count | - | 8 |
| integrations.list | - | `[{"name":"AWS IoT Device Shadow"},{"name":"AWS IoT Jobs"},{"name":"AWS IoT Device Defender"},{"name":"AWS IoT Fleet Provisioning"},{"name":"AWS IoT OTA"},{"name":"MbedTLS"},{"name":"WolfSSL"},{"name":"Percepio Tracealyzer"}]` |
| language.primary | - | C |
| license.spdx | - | MIT |
| market.availability | `{"hqCountry":"GB","primaryMarkets":[],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` | - |
| platform.support | `{"cli":true,"web":true}` | - |
| pricing | `{"type":"subscription","plans":[{"free":true,"name":"Free","summary":"$0/year, up to 10 devices","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":0,"period":"year","currency":"USD"}],"contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"devices":"10"}},{"free":false,"name":"Prototype","summary":"$159/month ($1,720/year with $188 savings), includes 30 devices, $3/month per additional device","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":159,"period":"month","currency":"USD"},{"kind":"per_unit","unit":"device","amount":3,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}],"contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"devices":"30"}},{"free":false,"name":"Pilot","summary":"$329/month ($3,588/year with $360 savings), includes 60 devices, $2/month per additional device","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":329,"period":"month","currency":"USD"},{"kind":"per_unit","unit":"device","amount":2,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}],"contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"devices":"60"}},{"free":false,"name":"Production","summary":"$1,439/month ($15,588/year with $1,680 savings), includes 110 devices, $2/month per additional device, annual commitment required","commitment":"annual","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":1439,"period":"month","currency":"USD"},{"kind":"per_unit","unit":"device","amount":2,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}],"contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"devices":"110"}},{"free":false,"name":"Enterprise","summary":"Custom pricing and deployment options including 24/7 dedicated support","contactSales":true}],"summary":"Free tier with 10 devices. Paid plans from $159/month. Annual billing available with discounts.","currency":"USD","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://www.balena.io/pricing","retrievedAt":"2026-08-19T09:04:42.975Z","startingPrice":{"amount":159,"period":"month","currency":"USD"},"billingPeriods":["month","year"]}` | `{"type":"open_source","plans":[{"free":true,"name":"FreeRTOS","description":"Open-source under MIT license"},{"free":false,"name":"OpenRTOS","description":"Commercially licensed version with support from WITTENSTEIN high integrity systems","contactSales":true}],"summary":"Free (MIT license); commercial support available via OpenRTOS","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://freertos.org","retrievedAt":"2026-08-21T12:46:49.512Z"}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | freemium | commercial |
| pricing.price_level | high | free |
| pricing.starting_price | `{"amount":159,"currency":"USD"}` | - |
| pricing.transparent | yes | - |
| release.cadence_days | - | 83 |
| release.history | - | `[{"url":"https://github.com/FreeRTOS/FreeRTOS/releases/tag/202411.00","date":"2024-11-21T06:51:00Z","type":"stable","version":"202411.00"},{"url":"https://github.com/FreeRTOS/FreeRTOS/releases/tag/202212.01","date":"2023-03-03T23:12:52Z","type":"stable","version":"202212.01"},{"url":"https://github.com/FreeRTOS/FreeRTOS/releases/tag/202212.00","date":"2022-12-10T01:22:17Z","type":"stable","version":"202212.00"},{"url":"https://github.com/FreeRTOS/FreeRTOS/releases/tag/202112.00","date":"2021-12-22T17:24:30Z","type":"stable","version":"202112.00"},{"url":"https://github.com/FreeRTOS/FreeRTOS/releases/tag/202111.00","date":"2021-11-13T02:40:47Z","type":"stable","version":"202111.00"},{"url":"https://github.com/FreeRTOS/FreeRTOS/releases/tag/202107.00","date":"2021-07-24T00:35:47Z","type":"stable","version":"202107.00"},{"url":"https://github.com/FreeRTOS/FreeRTOS/releases/tag/202104.00","date":"2021-04-29T18:45:32Z","type":"stable","version":"202104.00"},{"url":"https://github.com/FreeRTOS/FreeRTOS/releases/tag/202012.00","date":"2020-12-15T22:39:49Z","type":"stable","version":"202012.00"},{"url":"https://github.com/FreeRTOS/FreeRTOS/releases/tag/202011.00","date":"2020-11-10T22:51:06Z","type":"stable","version":"202011.00"},{"url":"https://github.com/FreeRTOS/FreeRTOS/releases/tag/V10.4.1","date":"2020-09-17T23:19:59Z","type":"stable","version":"V10.4.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/FreeRTOS/FreeRTOS/releases/tag/V10.4.0","date":"2020-09-11T17:20:15Z","type":"stable","version":"V10.4.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/FreeRTOS/FreeRTOS/releases/tag/V200717_LTS_development_snapshot","date":"2020-07-17T22:42:06Z","type":"prerelease","version":"V200717_LTS_development_snapshot"},{"url":"https://github.com/FreeRTOS/FreeRTOS/releases/tag/V10.3.1","date":"2020-02-19T05:06:39Z","type":"stable","version":"V10.3.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/FreeRTOS/FreeRTOS/releases/tag/V200218_LTS_development_snapshot","date":"2020-02-19T05:09:57Z","type":"prerelease","version":"V200218_LTS_development_snapshot"}]` |
| reliability.status_page | yes | - |
| security.disclosure_policy | yes | - |
| security.gdpr | yes | - |

## Capabilities (Embedded IOT Dev)

| Capability | balena | FreeRTOS |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Capabilities** |  |  |
| Target class | - | Microcontroller/RTOS |
| Rtos type | - | Preemptive |
| Low power support | - | - |
| Tls dtls stack | - | ✓ |
| Ota updates | - | ✓ |
| Device management console | - | ✓ |
| Device provisioning | - | ✓ |
| Open source | - | ✓ |
| PSA certified | - | ✓ |
| Rust support | - | - |

*Source: Vioscale. Generated 2026-09-01T15:10:01.506Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*