Boundary vs ShellHub
Boundary
developer.hashicorp.com
ShellHub
shellhub.ioSide by side
| Figure | Boundary | ShellHub |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 5 | 4 |
| Spec score · SSH Server Software | 9.0 (#1) | 8.0 (#14) |
| Access controls | Boundary supports just-in-time and least-privilege network access, role-based authorization, and single sign-on through OIDC and LDAP. | The platform includes device approval, role-based access control, multiple namespaces and device tagging. |
| Founded | 2020 | 2002 |
| Headquarters | San Francisco, California, United States | Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil |
| What it does | Boundary provides identity-based, authenticated access to servers, databases, applications, and cloud or on-premises infrastructure without direct network access. | ShellHub is a centralized SSH gateway for remotely accessing and managing servers, devices and containers through a web browser, mobile app or standard SSH tools. |
Plans
Boundary
- Boundary Community EditionFree
- Boundary Community EditionFree
- HCP Boundary PlusFree
- HCP Boundary StandardFree
- Boundary EnterprisePriced on request
ShellHub
- CommunityFree
- CloudPrice not published
- ManagedPriced on request
- On-PremisesPriced on request
In their own words
Boundary
Boundary provides authenticated, identity-based access to infrastructure without requiring users to connect directly to its underlying network. It supports just-in-time and least-privilege access, role-based authorization, and single sign-on through OIDC or LDAP. Users can reach TCP, SSH, RDP, HTTPS, RDS, Kubernetes, and database targets through familiar clients such as SSH tools, PuTTY, Remote Desktop, database clients, and web browsers. Boundary can broker credentials and integrate with HashiCorp Vault for short-lived dynamic credentials and credential injection. Target discovery can be automated, with dynamic host catalogs for AWS, Azure, and GCP available in HCP Boundary. Deployment options include managed HCP Boundary, optionally with customer-run workers, and self-managed Boundary Enterprise. The Community Edition is listed at free. HCP Boundary Standard and Plus have usage-based billing, with monthly rates per user depending on edition; Standard includes Vault credential injection and audit-log streaming, while Plus adds session recording. Enterprise is self-managed and has full feature parity with HCP Boundary. Boundary supports Terraform, a REST API, CLI, and SDK.