I'm searching for the best platform to host a web app that I've fully containerized using Docker. I'm moving from local development to production and want a reliable solution. My tech stack includes Vite and React for the frontend, and Node.js with Fastify for the backend. It's currently a personal project or MVP, but I want to ensure that I can scale it if needed.
I'm looking for options that include a generous free tier or costs under $10 a month, suitable for hobbyists. I'm open to both managed PaaS solutions for speed or VPS options if they offer better price-to-performance ratios. Key requirements for me are ease of deployment, including CI/CD integration, and low latency.
So far, I've considered Railway, Render, and Fly.io, but I'd love to hear about experiences from anyone with a similar Fastify and Vite setup, specifically regarding performance and pricing.
4 Answers
Common choices like Railway, Render, and Fly.io come highly recommended. Railway is super simple to get started with and great for MVPs, though it can become pricey as you scale. Render offers a similar experience with easy usage and predictable pricing, while Fly.io gives you more flexibility and is usually cheaper for smaller workloads, though it has a bit of a learning curve. If you prioritize simplicity, go for Railway or Render; if you want better cost efficiency and control, then Fly.io is often the better long-term choice.
At that price range, you should also check out canine.sh. It's like Dokku but completely free, and you can deploy to any VPS you select. For that, I'd suggest Hetzner, which could cost around $4 a month.
Digital Ocean is popular in many places, but if you're in Europe, Southeast Asia, or Africa, you might want to check out Hetzner. It's a reliable option over there.
DigitalOcean droplet is usually a good choice; it's around $5 to $10 a month, and you can set up Caprover on it for easy Docker deployments. There are also other free PaaS options out there that offer similar capabilities, but I can't recall their names at the moment.

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