Terraform or Pulumi? There is only one long term choice
Terraform or Pulumi? There is only one long term choice.
- Terraform and Pulumi are both open-source IaC tools that support multiple cloud providers and integrate with CI/CD pipelines.
- Terraform uses a declarative approach with HashiCorp Configuration Language, while Pulumi uses an imperative approach with languages like JavaScript, TypeScript, Python, and Go.
- Terraform has been around longer with a larger community and ecosystem, more readily available reusable modules, and greater maturity and stability.
- This post argues Terraform is the better long-term choice because its declarative model, ecosystem, stability, and simple HCL outweigh Pulumi's multi-language flexibility.
Infrastructure as Code (IaC) changed how teams deploy and manage cloud resources. Two of the most popular IaC tools today are Terraform and Pulumi. They solve the same problem, but they go about it differently. This post walks through where the two overlap, where they part ways, and why Terraform is the better long-term choice.
Similarities between Terraform and Pulumi
Start with what they have in common. Both tools are open-source and let you define cloud infrastructure in code. They support multiple cloud providers, including AWS, Azure, GCP, and Kubernetes. Both also automate the deployment and management of that infrastructure, and both integrate with Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) pipelines.
Differences between Terraform and Pulumi
Terraform and Pulumi differ in their approach and implementation. Terraform uses a declarative approach, while Pulumi uses an imperative approach. In Terraform, you define the desired state of your infrastructure, and Terraform figures out the actions needed to achieve that state. In contrast, with Pulumi, you write code that explicitly describes the actions to be taken.
Another significant difference between the two is their language support. Terraform uses HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL), which is similar to JSON, whereas Pulumi supports multiple languages, including JavaScript, TypeScript, Python, and Go. This allows developers to use the language they are most familiar with.
Terraform has been around for much longer than Pulumi and has a larger community and ecosystem. Terraform modules, which are reusable pieces of infrastructure code, are widely available, and you can find modules for most use cases. In contrast, Pulumi is relatively new, and its ecosystem is still growing.
Why Terraform is the better long-term choice
Pulumi's multi-language support and imperative approach can look appealing, but a few things still tip the balance toward Terraform for the long haul.
Start with the ecosystem. Terraform has a much larger community, which means more modules to pull from and more people who can help when you get stuck.
There's also the matter of state. Terraform's declarative approach makes it easier to reason about what your infrastructure actually looks like. With Pulumi's imperative approach, the current state can be harder to pin down once the use case gets complicated.
Maturity counts too. Terraform has been battle-tested over the years and is used by many large enterprises to manage their cloud infrastructure. It is a mature and stable tool, whereas Pulumi is newer and lacks the same level of stability and maturity.
The last point is the learning curve. Terraform's HCL is a simple and easy-to-learn language, similar to JSON, so developers can get productive quickly. Pulumi's support for multiple languages adds flexibility, but it also adds complexity at the start.
Pulumi has real strengths, and for some teams the language flexibility will win out. For most teams managing cloud infrastructure in code, though, Terraform's ecosystem, declarative model, stability, and simple HCL make it the safer bet over time.
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