Is Stream worth the price?
Stream's pricing model is generous for early-stage projects with its free 'Maker' tier offering 5M messages and 100 concurrent users.
However, the lack of transparent pricing for 'Scale' and 'Enterprise' tiers makes it difficult to assess overall value for growing and large applications. It's best for startups and developers needing a robust chat/feed API to get started without upfront costs.
Pricing Plans
Free TrialMaker
Free
Getting started
- 5M monthly messages
- 100 concurrent users
- Chat SDK
- Basic support
Scale
null
Growing apps
- Custom messages
- Custom users
- SLA
- Priority support
Enterprise
null
Large scale
- Unlimited usage
- 99.999% SLA
- Dedicated infrastructure
- 24/7 support
Hidden Costs & Gotchas
Overage fees for exceeding 'Maker' limits are not specified.
Custom pricing for 'Scale' and 'Enterprise' can lead to high costs.
Specific feature access might be gated behind higher tiers.
Potential for increased costs with priority/dedicated support.
Which Plan Do You Need?
Startups needing free chat/feed API
Developers prototyping new apps
Companies with custom scaling needs
How Stream Compares to Competitors
Compared to Sendbird, which often has higher starting prices for similar message volumes, Stream's free 'Maker' tier is a significant advantage. However, without public pricing for 'Scale' and 'Enterprise', it's hard to directly compare costs for larger deployments, where Sendbird and PubNub also offer custom enterprise solutions.
Stream Pricing FAQ
How much does Stream cost?
Stream uses custom pricing. Contact Stream directly for a quote based on your team size and requirements.
Does Stream have a free plan?
Yes. Stream offers a free plan called "Maker". It includes: 5M monthly messages, 100 concurrent users, Chat SDK.
Does Stream offer a free trial?
Yes, Stream offers a free trial. No credit card is typically required to start the trial, though this may vary.
Is there a cheaper alternative to Stream?
Yes. Popular alternatives to Stream include Sendbird, PubNub, CometChat. Free alternatives include Sendbird, PubNub, CometChat. Compare them side-by-side on Toolradar.
Cheaper alternatives to Stream
3 of 3 direct competitors below offer a free plan. Per-seat pricing varies up to 60% across this set.
