dbt Labs vs Prefect Pricing (2026)

Which one is cheaper?

They both start at the same price — $100/mo. The difference is in what you get at each tier.

Can I use either one for free?

Both offer free plans, so you can try each without paying. Start with whichever fits your workflow better and upgrade when you hit the limits.

How do they charge?

Both use a hybrid model, so the comparison is straightforward — it comes down to features and limits at each price point.

Which one is a better deal?

Depends on what you need. dbt Labs: At $100/user/month, Starter isn't cheap for what's essentially a small-team tier — it signals dbt Labs is positioning as the premium standard in the analytics engineering space rather than competing on price. They're betting that teams already sold on dbt as a category (versus building it themselves) will pay up rather than shop around. Prefect: At $100/mo entry for paid plans, Prefect sits mid-pack — pricier than bare-bones workflow tools but well below heavyweight enterprise data orchestration platforms that gate everything behind custom quotes. They're clearly courting data teams who've outgrown open-source Prefect Core but aren't ready for a six-figure Airflow-alternative contract.

Still deciding? See the best dbt Labs alternatives or the best Prefect alternatives, ranked with verified pricing.