Choose Orb when…
Choose Orb if its usage pricing model fits your budget shape better than Lago's freemium model, and you are saas.
- SaaS with recurring revenue
- Usage-based pricing models
Not for: Simple projects
Subscription Billing
Orb vs Lago
The most concrete split between Orb and Lago is the pricing model: Orb runs on usage-based pricing from $1, while Lago uses freemium with paid plans from $1. That shapes how predictable your monthly spend is and how much of the cost sits in infrastructure versus per-seat or per-event fees. Beyond the headline, Orb carries medium lock-in (billing data exportable) and usage-based pricing from $1; Lago carries low lock-in (open-source billing, self-hostable) and freemium with paid plans from $1. Orb is a fit when you are saas. Lago is a fit when you are saas. The honest trade-off: Orb is explicitly not for simple projects; Lago is explicitly not for simple projects. On the product side, Orb is described as Developer-first subscription and usage billing platform with a flexible pricing model API and Stripe-compatible webhooks, and Lago is described as Open-source metering and usage-based billing API supporting flat, tiered, volume, and percentage pricing models.
Quick take
Orb is for saas; Lago is for saas; decide on pricing model.
Feature comparison
| | | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Subscription Billing | Subscription Billing |
| Pricing Model | usage | freemium |
| Entry Price | $1 | $1 |
| Free Tier | No | Yes |
| Billing Complexity | — | — |
| Developer Experience | 5/5 | 4/5 |
| Pricing Transparency | 3/5 | 4/5 |
| Lock-in Level | medium | low |
| Migration Complexity | — | — |
| Data Portability | — | — |
| Enterprise | Available | Available |
| GitHub Stars | — | — |
| License | — | — |
When to choose which
Choose Lago when…
Choose Lago if you need a free tier to start before committing budget, and your use case matches saas.
- SaaS with recurring revenue
- Usage-based pricing models
- Generous free tier for getting started
Not for: Simple projects
Common use cases
Orb
- SaaS with recurring revenue
- Usage-based pricing models
- Complex plan management
Lago
- SaaS with recurring revenue
- Usage-based pricing models
- Complex plan management
Ready to explore?
Check each tool's dedicated page for deeper reviews, setup notes, and pros/cons.
Frequently asked questions
Is Orb cheaper than Lago?
Orb starts at $1; Lago starts at $1. On entry price alone that is the comparison, but real cost scales with users, events or volume, which the entry prices do not capture. Check each vendor's full tier list before committing.
Can I migrate from Orb to Lago?
Migration from Orb to Lago is feasible but not trivial: Orb has medium lock-in (billing data exportable). Core data can move; integrations and workflow logic need rebuild. Allow for a parallel-run period.
Which has better developer experience?
On our scoring Orb rates 5/5 for developer experience versus 4/5 for Lago. That suggests day-to-day workflows (CLI, SDKs, docs) are smoother in Orb. Scores are directional; run a short spike on your own stack to confirm.
Is Lago a good alternative to Orb?
Lago targets the same best-fit audience as Orb (saas). Note that Lago is explicitly not for simple projects, so it only replaces Orb if you are outside that exclusion. The lock-in profile differs (medium vs low), which is the main thing to weigh.
Community Discussion
Comments powered by Giscus (GitHub Discussions). You need a GitHub account to comment.