You’re comparing Weld vs Meltano vs Portable. Explore how they differ on connectors, pricing, and features. 
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Loved by data teams from around the world
| Feature | Weld | Meltano | Portable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core Platform | |||
| Price | $79 / 5M Active Rows | Free (self-hosted), Meltano Cloud is custom pricing | Flat per connector (no volume fees) |
| Free tier | No | Yes | Yes |
| Location | DK, (EU) | US | US |
| Connectors & Sync | |||
| Connectors | 200+ | 600+ | 1000+ |
| Extract data (ETL) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Sync to HubSpot, Salesforce, Klaviyo, Excel (reverse ETL) | Yes | No | No |
| Two-Way Sync | Yes | No | No |
| Transformations & AI | |||
| Transformations | Yes | No | No |
| AI Assistant | Yes | No | No |
| dbt Core Integration | Yes | Yes | No |
| dbt Cloud Integration | Yes | No | No |
| Governance & DevOps | |||
| Orchestration | Yes | Yes | No |
| Lineage | Yes | No | No |
| Version control | Yes | Yes | No |
| On-Premise | No | Yes | No |
| OpenAPI / Developer API | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Integrations | |||
| Load to/from Excel | Yes | No | No |
| Load to/from Google Sheets | Yes | No | No |
| Ratings | |||
| G2 rating | 4.8 | 4.6 | 4.8 |
Overview
Weld is a unified ELT and data activation platform that combines ingestion, modeling, transformations, orchestration, lineage, and reverse ETL in a single SaaS interface. With premium in-house–built connectors, an intuitive UI, and near real-time syncs, Weld enables both technical and non-technical users to create and manage data workflows efficiently. Weld also includes an AI assistant to support SQL modeling, generate transformations, and streamline repetitive tasks. Teams can ingest data from a wide range of sources—including marketing platforms, CRMs, databases, Google Sheets, Excel, and APIs—into their cloud data warehouse and activate it back into business tools.
Lineage, orchestration, and workflow features included by default
Handles large datasets and near real-time data sync
ELT and reverse ETL in one platform
User-friendly interface with minimal setup required
Flat, predictable monthly pricing model
200+ in-house–built, high-quality connectors
AI assistant for modeling and transformations
Some SQL knowledge is useful for advanced modeling
Optimized for cloud-warehouse workflows (Snowflake, BigQuery, Redshift, etc.)
Feature set is streamlined for modern ELT/activation use cases
A reviewer on G2 said:
Overview
Meltano is an open-source data integration and orchestration platform built around the Singer ecosystem. It focuses on engineering workflows, version control, and reproducible pipelines. Meltano offers extensive connector coverage through Singer taps and targets, along with strong support for dbt, Airflow, and Dagster. While it provides high flexibility for technical teams, it requires more setup and maintenance than fully managed ELT tools.
Open-source platform
Large connector coverage via the Singer ecosystem
SDK for building and maintaining Singer taps/targets
Strong engineering workflow support (CLI-first, version-controlled)
Flexible deployment options including Meltano Cloud
No fully polished, mature managed option (Meltano Cloud is early-stage)
High maintenance requirements, especially for Singer connectors
Connector quality varies significantly across the community
No built-in reverse ETL or native transformations
Less suitable for non-technical teams
As a user on G2 puts it::
“All the managerial tasks are handled under the hood, leaving you to focus on getting or consuming the data you need.”
“With so many features baked into Meltano, navigating the documentation can be challenging. However, I've gotten around this by using Bing AI search, which brings me the answer immediately.”
Overview
[Portable.io](http://portable.io/) is a cloud-based extract-and-load (EL) platform focused on supporting long-tail data sources. It provides more than 1,000 connectors—including many niche APIs—and offers on-demand custom connector development at no additional cost. Designed primarily for loading data into warehouses, Portable handles API maintenance, schema updates, and rate limits, allowing teams to access a wide range of sources without engineering overhead.
Broad connector coverage with over 1,000 sources
Custom connectors built on demand at no extra cost
Flat per-connector pricing without volume-based fees
Fully managed pipelines, including API changes and schema updates
Simple setup with minimal configuration required
EL-only platform with no built-in transformation capabilities
Cloud-only SaaS with no on-prem deployment
Does not support reverse ETL or data activation features
Some newly created connectors may require tuning before stabilizing
Limited scheduling flexibility compared to full orchestration tools
G2 Review:
“They have excellent support and communication in both timelines and quality of response.”
“There is a learning curve when working with more complex transformations, and support may be limited for highly specialized setups.”
Side-by-side
Weld’s interface is built for clarity and speed, enabling users with varying levels of technical experience to manage data pipelines and models efficiently. Its built-in lineage and orchestration tools provide transparency across workflows.
Meltano is simple and easy to use for those with technical expertise, particularly due to its portability and command-line usability, but may be challenging for less technical users.
[Portable.io](http://portable.io/) offers a minimal and straightforward interface where users select a source, authenticate, and start loading data. It is designed for quick setup and ease of use, even for non-technical users.
Side-by-side
Weld’s interface is built for clarity and speed, enabling users with varying levels of technical experience to manage data pipelines and models efficiently. Its built-in lineage and orchestration tools provide transparency across workflows.
Meltano is simple and easy to use for those with technical expertise, particularly due to its portability and command-line usability, but may be challenging for less technical users.
[Portable.io](http://portable.io/) offers a minimal and straightforward interface where users select a source, authenticate, and start loading data. It is designed for quick setup and ease of use, even for non-technical users.
Side-by-side
Weld offers a simple and predictable pricing model starting at $79 for 5 million active rows. This flat, usage-transparent structure makes budgeting straightforward for small and medium-sized teams.
Meltano is open-source and free to use, making it highly affordable, but requires significant investment in deployment and maintenance, especially without a fully managed option.
Portable’s flat per-connector pricing model provides predictable costs and can be more affordable for organizations pulling smaller volumes of data from many sources.
Side-by-side
Weld offers a simple and predictable pricing model starting at $79 for 5 million active rows. This flat, usage-transparent structure makes budgeting straightforward for small and medium-sized teams.
Meltano is open-source and free to use, making it highly affordable, but requires significant investment in deployment and maintenance, especially without a fully managed option.
Portable’s flat per-connector pricing model provides predictable costs and can be more affordable for organizations pulling smaller volumes of data from many sources.
Side-by-side
Weld provides ELT ingestion, SQL-based transformations, reverse ETL activation, data lineage, orchestration, and workflow management in a single platform. Its AI assistant accelerates modeling and transformation tasks.
The platform offers extensive integration options, including support for data transformation and orchestration, but relies heavily on the Singer framework, which can limit capabilities.
The platform prioritizes extensive connector coverage, automatic schema management, and reliable EL pipelines. It does not offer transformation or activation features, expecting those to be handled downstream.
Side-by-side
Weld provides ELT ingestion, SQL-based transformations, reverse ETL activation, data lineage, orchestration, and workflow management in a single platform. Its AI assistant accelerates modeling and transformation tasks.
The platform offers extensive integration options, including support for data transformation and orchestration, but relies heavily on the Singer framework, which can limit capabilities.
The platform prioritizes extensive connector coverage, automatic schema management, and reliable EL pipelines. It does not offer transformation or activation features, expecting those to be handled downstream.
Side-by-side
Users can model data using SQL enhanced by Weld’s AI assistant, automate workflows, and build custom connectors to any API. This provides strong flexibility for teams that want to tailor integrations and transformations within one platform.
Meltano is highly flexible for advanced users who can manage their own deployments and build on the platform, but it requires substantial maintenance and lacks a fully managed option.
While transformations cannot be performed within the platform, Portable’s custom connector development ensures flexibility in what sources can be supported. Its simplicity comes at the cost of deeper customization options.
Side-by-side
Users can model data using SQL enhanced by Weld’s AI assistant, automate workflows, and build custom connectors to any API. This provides strong flexibility for teams that want to tailor integrations and transformations within one platform.
Meltano is highly flexible for advanced users who can manage their own deployments and build on the platform, but it requires substantial maintenance and lacks a fully managed option.
While transformations cannot be performed within the platform, Portable’s custom connector development ensures flexibility in what sources can be supported. Its simplicity comes at the cost of deeper customization options.
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CUSTOMER STORIES
“One of the biggest impacts has been unlocking new ways to buy media. Before, we didn’t have the data to back up strategic decisions – now we do.”
“Before Weld, we had to rely on custom Python scripts and manual processes that were time-consuming and error-prone.”
“We’re still a team of three, but we’re often doing far more than the equivalent of three full-time employees. That’s down to how we're able to leverage systems, data, and processes.”
“We’ve always been a KPI-driven company. But we wanted to scale that mindset across every team member, every team, every decision.”
“Before Weld, our data infrastructure was limited and we relied heavily on Excel files and custom Python scripts.”
“Weld has saved us a ton of time, from not having data ready to having a fully functional data warehouse and connectors.”
“By integrating Weld, Amazon S3, and Databricks, Soundboks built a modern data pipeline that automates data ingestion, improves reporting, and provides up-to-date visibility into sales performance”
“We didn’t have a good data setup, so we lacked the business insights we needed. Weld has allowed us to set up a structured data infrastructure and access insights quickly.”
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