Short answer: Redocly's open-source tools are free and its hosted tiers are priced per seat and per page; Powerduck keeps the desktop and Hub hosting free within plan limits. The pricing difference is the per-page, per-seat gate against a generated surface hosted within plan limits.

What the hosted tiers track

Seats, pages, and features, with MCP and AI search on the higher plans. A larger portal or team moves you across a gate.

What a generated surface tracks

PropertyHosted tiersStudio / Hub
Reference sizePer pageFrom spec
SeatsPer seatHub within plan
MCPHigher planGenerated
Exit costMigrationPortable

How to estimate

Count the pages and the seats, and note which features sit behind the higher plans. A large reference is a large bill on a hosted tier.

The honest takeaway

The hosted portal is worth it when you want the governance and the hosting handled. If the reference and the tools should stay portable, a generated surface is the lower-cost path.

This is part of the Powerduck vs Redocly comparison. Next, read linting vs validation.