AWS CDK vs Terragrunt

AWS CDK is a framework for defining AWS cloud application infrastructure with familiar programming languages and deploying it through AWS CloudFormation. Stable bindings are available for TypeScript, JavaScript, Python, Java, C#/.NET, and Go. The AWS Construct Library supplies reusable constructs for AWS services and features. CDK Pipelines supports CI/CD deployment to testing, integration, and production environments. In Visual Studio Code, the AWS CDK Explorer preview can browse projects, stacks, resources, and policies. The tool supports AWS only and provides managed state, policy as code, drift detection, importing existing resources, and self-hosted execution. CDK itself has no charge, although deployed AWS resources may incur charges. Developers need Node.js 22.x or later regardless of application language. Deployments use configured AWS credentials and IAM roles. AWS recommends IAM security practices, and custom constructs cannot guarantee compliance because general-purpose code can bypass their checks.

Terragrunt is an open-source infrastructure-as-code orchestration tool for running Terraform and OpenTofu at scale. It organizes infrastructure into independently operated units and groups related units into stacks. Its Run Queue uses dependency relationships to order operations and allow safe concurrency where possible. Teams can define shared backend settings, provider configuration, module inputs, and environment conventions once, then inherit them across units. It supports AWS, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure, and other Terraform- or OpenTofu-supported platforms, with self-hosted state management and the ability to import existing resources. The core tool is documented for Windows, macOS, and Linux. The Free Scale tier allows up to 25 infrastructure units, unlimited runs, and unlimited resources without RUM, with community support and no credit card required. Team costs $500 a month, reflecting a 17% annual contract discount, and includes 200 infrastructure units and standard support. Terragrunt Scale adds CI/CD pipelines, drift detection, and automated dependency updates, with GitHub and GitLab workflow support. Enterprise has custom pricing.