Swarmia excels at engineering productivity metrics, but lacks a software catalog and requires recurring per-developer fees. Here's why teams might want to choose Phaset for different use cases.
Phaset and Swarmia solve different problems. Swarmia focuses on engineering productivity metrics and workflow optimization, while Phaset provides a comprehensive software catalog for architecture documentation, service ownership, and knowledge consolidation. If you need both capabilities, you might use them together—or choose Phaset's broader feature set with built-in DORA metrics.
Why this matters: If you're primarily tracking developer productivity, Swarmia is excellent. But if you need to document architecture, track service ownership, or maintain a service inventory, you need a software catalog—which Swarmia doesn't provide. Phaset aims to give teams both the catalog and DORA metrics.
Why this matters: Organizations with strict data sovereignty requirements, compliance mandates (HIPAA, FedRAMP, government contracts), or security policies often cannot use cloud SaaS platforms that access repository data. Self-hosted Phaset provides complete data privacy and control.
Why this matters: Over 3 years for 100 developers, Swarmia costs ~€141,000 (~$153,000) while Phaset costs $249 total. This pricing difference becomes more dramatic as teams scale. User reviews specifically cite Swarmia's per-developer pricing as a pain point for larger organizations.
Why this matters: If your goal is improving team productivity, Swarmia's workflow metrics are valuable. But if you need to enforce security standards, track technical debt, or ensure services meet architectural requirements, you need governance capabilities—which Phaset aims to provide alongside productivity metrics.
Why this matters: User reviews consistently mention Swarmia's customization limitations as a pain point. Organizations with unique structures, complex hierarchies, or specific compliance needs require flexibility. Phaset's manifest-based approach and self-hosted nature aim to provide that adaptability.
| Feature | Phaset | Swarmia |
|---|---|---|
| Software Catalog | ✓ | — |
| Standards Compliance | ✓ | — |
| Health Scores | ✓ | — |
| DORA Metrics | âś“ | âś“ |
| Self-Hosted | âś“ | Cloud-only SaaS |
| Starting Price | $249 once | €39/user/month |
| Annual Cost (100 devs) | $249 total | ~€47,000/year |
| Data Privacy | Your infrastructure | Their cloud |
| Setup Time | <1 hour | Hours |
| Operational Overhead | Minimal | None (SaaS) |
| Learning Curve | Low | Low |
| Architecture Focus | Knowledge consolidation | Productivity metrics |
| Multi-dimensional Organization | ✓ (3 dimensions) | — |
| GitOps-Native | ✓ | — |
| Productivity Workflow Metrics | — | ✓ |
| Developer Experience Focus | Via metrics | âś“ |
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