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ThingsBoard
What it is
ThingsBoard is an IoT platform for managing devices and collecting, processing, and visualizing their data. Its dashboards provide real-time IoT and SCADA views, with more than 300 built-in widgets and support for custom widgets. Native connectivity covers MQTT, CoAP, HTTP, LwM2M, and SNMP; an IoT Gateway adds protocols such as Modbus, BACnet, CAN bus, BLE, and OPC-UA. Rule Engine nodes support data processing and platform customization, while integrations connect services and gateways including AWS IoT, Azure IoT Hub, Google Cloud Pub/Sub, LoRaWAN servers, MQTT brokers, and OPC-UA servers. Deployment options include cloud, dedicated Private Cloud, and on-premises installations, including fully offline self-managed setups. Security options include two-factor authentication, OAuth 2.0/SSO, JWT tokens, API keys, and HTTPS/TLS configuration. The free cloud plan lists five devices, five assets, and one million data points per month. Listed ThingsBoard Cloud pricing includes Prototype at $39/mo and Pilot at $99/mo; Cloud plans have device and data-point limits. Paid subscriptions include access to the Support Portal.
For and against
For
- Dashboards include over 300 built-in widgets.
- Supports native IoT protocols and gateway connections.
- Offers cloud, private cloud, and on-premises deployment.
- Free cloud plan includes five devices and five assets.
- Security options include two-factor authentication and OAuth 2.0/SSO.
Against
- Cloud plans have device and data-point limits.
- The free cloud plan is limited to five devices.
- Paid subscriptions are required for Support Portal access.
The verdict
ThingsBoard combines device management, protocol connectivity, processing, and real-time dashboards. Check the device and data-point limits against project needs when choosing a cloud plan.
Who it suits
ThingsBoard may suit teams building IoT projects that need device connectivity, data processing, and visualization. Its cloud, private cloud, and on-premises deployment options support different hosting requirements.
Plans and prices
Free
5 devices · 5 assets · 1M data points/mo
Read 22 Sep 2026 · thingsboard.io
Prototype
50 devices · 50 assets · 10M data points/mo
Read 22 Sep 2026 · thingsboard.io
Pilot
100 devices · 100 assets · 100M data points/mo
Read 22 Sep 2026 · thingsboard.io
Startup
500 devices · 500 assets · 500M data points/mo
Read 22 Sep 2026 · thingsboard.io
Business
1,000 devices · 1,000 assets · 1B data points/mo
Read 22 Sep 2026 · thingsboard.io
Free (ThingsBoard Cloud)
5 devices · 5 assets · 1M data points/month · community support
Read 14 Oct 2026 · thingsboard.io
Prototype (ThingsBoard Cloud)
50 devices · 50 assets · 10M data points/month
Read 14 Oct 2026 · thingsboard.io
Pilot (on-premises)
100 devices · 100 assets · 1 production instance
Read 14 Oct 2026 · thingsboard.io
Pilot (ThingsBoard Cloud)
100 devices · 100 assets · 1 production instance
Read 14 Oct 2026 · thingsboard.io
On the record
- API
- REST, WebSocket, Entity Data Query, Alarm Query and MCP server APIs are documented, with an interactive Swagger interface and API-key authentication.thingsboard.io · read 14 Oct 2026
- App complaint
- An Apple App Store reviewer complains that iPhone options are too small or hidden and real-time/history settings cannot be adjusted.apps.apple.com · read 14 Oct 2026
- Cloud compliance
- ThingsBoard states its cloud infrastructure uses ISO 27001 and SOC II compliant facilities, with North American and EU data regions.thingsboard.io · read 14 Oct 2026
- Company headquarters
- The company lists 110 Duane Street, Suite 1C, New York, NY 10007 as its headquarters.thingsboard.io · read 14 Oct 2026
- Company history
- ThingsBoard says it began in 2016 with two co-founders and established ThingsBoard Inc. in 2018.thingsboard.io · read 14 Oct 2026
- Compliance and residency
- The maker states ThingsBoard Cloud is hosted on infrastructure compliant with SOC II and ISO 27001, and offers North America or EU data regions.thingsboard.io · read 29 Sep 2026
- Crunchbase legal name
- Crunchbase identifies the maker as ThingsBoard, Inc., a private for-profit company founded by Andrew Shvayka.crunchbase.com · read 14 Oct 2026
- Dashboards
- Dashboards provide responsive pages with charts, tables, maps, controls, aliases, time windows, actions, sharing and embedding.thingsboard.io · read 14 Oct 2026
- Deployment
- ThingsBoard offers cloud, dedicated Private Cloud, and on-premises deployments, including fully offline self-managed installations.thingsboard.io · read 29 Sep 2026
- Device connectivity
- The platform supports MQTT, Modbus, LoRaWAN, HTTP, OCPP, OPC-UA, CoAP, Sigfox, BACnet and S7 connectivity.thingsboard.io · read 14 Oct 2026
- Documentation
- Documentation covers connectivity guides, APIs and SDKs, dashboards, widgets, rule nodes, integrations, OTA, alarms, mobile and custom extensions.thingsboard.io · read 14 Oct 2026
- Edge operation
- ThingsBoard Edge runs platform functions locally, stores telemetry and continues dashboards and alarms during connectivity loss before synchronizing.thingsboard.io · read 14 Oct 2026
- Free trial
- ThingsBoard Cloud offers a 30-day free trial, and the maker says no credit card is required to start.thingsboard.io · read 29 Sep 2026
- Gateway connectors
- The IoT Gateway supplies 15 built-in connectors including MQTT, Modbus, OPC-UA, BACnet, Siemens S7, REST, BLE, CAN, FTP, KNX, ODBC, OCPP, SNMP, Socket and XMPP.thingsboard.io · read 14 Oct 2026
- Integrations
- Documented integrations include AWS IoT, Azure IoT Hub, Google Pub/Sub, MQTT brokers, Kafka, OPC-UA and LoRaWAN network servers.thingsboard.io · read 14 Oct 2026
- Intended users
- The maker describes the platform as covering IoT projects from initial device connectivity through visualization, server-side processing, and scaling.thingsboard.io · read 29 Sep 2026
- Licence
- Version 4.4 and later use Business Source License 1.1 and are source-available rather than OSI open source; releases before 4.4 remain Apache 2.0.thingsboard.io · read 14 Oct 2026
- Limit: CoAP
- The CoAP integration documentation states that downlink support is currently unavailable.thingsboard.io · read 14 Oct 2026
The review
Overview
ThingsBoard brings device management, protocol connectivity, data processing and dashboards into one IoT platform. It suits teams building projects that need broad connectivity or control over deployment. Its breadth is a strength, but cloud plans place firm ceilings on devices and monthly data points.
Key features
Connectivity covers MQTT, CoAP, HTTP, LwM2M and SNMP natively, with an IoT Gateway for Modbus, BACnet, CAN bus, BLE and OPC-UA. That range is useful for projects combining different device types and industrial protocols; a small, uniform fleet may not need it.
Real-time IoT and SCADA dashboards offer more than 300 built-in widgets and support custom widgets. This gives teams flexibility to build operational views rather than rely on a fixed dashboard set. The Rule Engine provides nodes for data processing and platform customization, and stream processing is real-time.
Integrations connect services and gateways including AWS IoT, Azure IoT Hub, Google Cloud Pub/Sub, LoRaWAN servers, MQTT brokers and OPC-UA servers. Security options include two-factor authentication, OAuth 2.0/SSO, JWT tokens, API keys and HTTPS/TLS configuration. Anomaly detection and machine-learning tools are also included.
Pricing
ThingsBoard offers cloud subscriptions and on-premises options. Cloud plans set device, asset and monthly data-point limits; additional entity and API-call packs are available subject to plan rules. The free cloud tier is tightly capped, while higher tiers expand capacity without removing the need to match quotas to expected use.
| Plan | Price | Included limits |
|---|---|---|
| Free (ThingsBoard Cloud) | free | 5 devices, 5 assets, 1M data points/mo |
| Prototype (ThingsBoard Cloud) | $39 a month | 50 devices, 50 assets, 10M data points/mo |
| Pilot (ThingsBoard Cloud) | $99 a month | 100 devices, 100 assets, 100M data points/mo |
| Startup (ThingsBoard Cloud) | $299 a month | 500 devices, 500 assets, 500M data points/mo |
| Free (On-premises) | free | 100 devices, 100 assets, 1 production instance |
| Pilot (On-premises) | $99 a month | 100 devices, 100 assets, 1 production instance |
| Startup (On-premises) | $299 a month | 500 devices, 500 assets, 2 production instances |
The free cloud tier is suited to a small proof of concept, but five devices and 1M data points per month leave little room for growth. Prototype raises that to 50 devices and 10M data points for $39 a month. Pilot costs $99 a month in either deployment mode, though its cloud plan includes 100M data points while its on-premises plan specifies one production instance. Startup at $299 a month raises cloud capacity to 500 devices and 500M data points, or provides two production instances on premises. Paid subscriptions include access to the Support Portal; Startup includes priority support. Business is also offered at $749 a month, with 1,000 devices, 1,000 assets and 1B data points/mo, for larger cloud deployments. A free trial is offered.
Platforms
ThingsBoard supports Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, Windows, web, API and self-hosted use. Deployment choices include cloud, dedicated Private Cloud and on-premises installations, including fully offline self-managed setups. The maker says ThingsBoard Cloud runs on infrastructure compliant with SOC II and ISO 27001 and offers North America and EU data regions.
Who it's for
ThingsBoard is a good fit for teams moving from device connectivity through server-side processing to operational visualization, especially when projects need varied protocols, integrations or deployment control. It is less compelling for a small cloud project whose device count or data volume will quickly outgrow the free tier, or for buyers seeking a narrowly focused dashboard without the broader platform.
Pros and cons
- Pros: Broad native and gateway protocol support helps accommodate mixed and industrial devices.
- Pros: Real-time SCADA and IoT dashboards combine 300+ built-in widgets with custom widgets.
- Pros: Cloud, private cloud, on-premises and offline deployment give teams meaningful infrastructure choices.
- Cons: The free cloud allowance of five devices and 1M data points per month is restrictive beyond a small proof of concept.
- Cons: Cloud plan quotas require careful selection as device and data volumes grow.
Alternatives
Datacake is worth considering for a smaller device fleet: its free plan covers five devices, while its Hobby plan is €25 a month for up to 25 devices and one year of data retention.
TagoIO is another freemium option, with a free tier covering five devices and five dashboards; its Starter plan is $49 a month and includes two profiles and 100 devices per profile.
Ubidots may suit non-commercial projects that fit its three-device STEM free plan; its Professional plan is $99 a month.
Honeywell Forge offers product-specific IoT offerings with term-based licensing and feature choices for Advanced Process Control; contact Honeywell for pricing.
Zoho IoT is an option with a Standard plan covering 100 devices/assets, 240 M datapoints storage and 12 months of retention.
OpenRemote is a free platform with self-hosting and community support.
InfluxDB is an alternative for projects centered on time-series data, with a single-node InfluxDB 3 Core option and usage-based Cloud Serverless Data In.
Losant Enterprise IoT Platform has a Launch plan at $250 a month with 100,000 payloads per month and 90 days of retention.
For category comparisons, browse IoT Analytics Software, IoT Device Management Platforms or IoT Edge Platforms.
Verdict
Choose ThingsBoard if your IoT project needs protocol breadth, processing and customizable real-time dashboards with the option to run in the cloud or under your own infrastructure. Its main trade-off is capacity planning: the free cloud tier is small, and paid cloud plans still bind growth to device and data-point quotas. Projects that fit those limits can get a broad platform in one place; teams that cannot should compare alternatives around their device count and retention needs.
