Node RED vs Thingsboard
A side-by-side comparison of Node RED and Thingsboard — pricing, license, deployment, and where each tool wins.
Node RED
nodered.org
Browser-based flow editor that helps you wiring hardware devices, APIs and online services to create IoT solutions.
Thingsboard
thingsboard.io
Open-source IoT Platform - Device management, data collection, processing and visualization.
| Feature | Node RED | Thingsboard |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| Model | Open-source | Open-source |
| License | CC-BY-SA-3.0 | CC-BY-SA-3.0 |
| Deployment | Self-hosted | Self-hosted |
| Category | Internet of Things (IoT) | Internet of Things (IoT) |
| Self-hosted | ✓Yes | ✓Yes |
| Free tier | ✓Yes | ✓Yes |
Pick Node RED if…
- ✓You prefer Node RED's feature set or ecosystem fit.
Pick Thingsboard if…
- ✓You prefer Thingsboard's feature set or ecosystem fit.