Side by side
Hiro vs Talo
Both stand on game backend services. Which one you can start free with, which one lets you read the code, and what each costs once you pay.
Paid AndroidAPIiPhone+5
Hiro provides a broad set of game systems across multiple client options, with offline cached-data support in the Unity SDK. Its Nakama requirement and undisclosed per-developer price are important planning considerations.
Visit Hiro Free plan APISelf-hostedWeb
Choose Talo if you want gameplay, analytics, and multiplayer backend tools with hosted and self-hosted options. Its free hosted tier covers games with fewer than 10,000 players, while the Team and Studio plans raise the player limits for a monthly fee. Look elsewhere if those player limits or the possibility of inactive-account deletion do not fit your needs.
Visit TaloThe facts
| Hiro | Talo | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | No | Yes |
| Open source | Not published | Not published |
| Runs on | Android, API, iPhone, Linux, Mac, Self-hosted, Web, Windows | API, Self-hosted, Web |
| Lowest paid plan | Free or on request | Team: $24.99 a month |
| Plans published | 1 | 4 |
| Maker | Not published | Not published |
| Website | heroiclabs.com | trytalo.com |
| On game backend services | #22 of 27 | #18 of 27 |
Hiro: what it does well
- Economy, social, and LiveOps features
- Client options for Unity, Unreal, web, and Godot
- Unity SDK supports offline cached data
- Dedicated engineering support is available
- Documented integrations include Firebase and Unity Purchasing
What to know first
- Requires a Nakama server
- Hiro is available exclusively from Heroic Labs
- Some third-party packages are not included
Talo: what it does well
- Includes leaderboards, saves, player properties, and live configuration.
- Tracks events and provides global or per-player stats.
- Supports real-time channels, player relationships, and websocket presence.
- Offers Godot and Unity packages plus a REST API.
- MIT-licensed with Docker images available for self-hosting.
What to know first
- Free hosted tier covers games with fewer than 10,000 players.
- Inactive player accounts may be automatically deleted on the free tier.
- Data export requires an email request.