Heroku

Salesforce's long-running PaaS that deploys apps with git push, dynos and add-ons.

Verified facts: 4 of 4
Alternatives ranked: 6
Approved reviews: 0
Visits sent from here: 0

About Heroku

Heroku defined the platform-as-a-service model: you push code with Git, buildpacks detect the language and build it, and the app runs in containers called dynos that you scale with a command. Managed Postgres, Key-Value Store, Kafka and a large marketplace of add-ons cover databases, logging, email and monitoring, and review apps and pipelines handle staging and production. It supports Ruby, Node.js, Python, Java, PHP, Go and more. Heroku removed its free tier in 2022; the cheapest Eco dynos sleep when idle, and Basic and larger dynos are billed monthly per dyno, so costs climb faster than on newer usage-based platforms. In February 2026 Heroku announced a move to a sustaining engineering model focused on stability, security and support rather than new features, while saying nothing changes for existing customers. It remains a dependable choice for existing apps, but many teams starting fresh now compare it with Render, Railway and Fly.io.

Best for: Teams with existing Heroku apps that value a stable, well-known git-push workflow.

What works

Simple git-push deploys with mature buildpacks
Large add-on marketplace
Pipelines and review apps for staging workflows

Why people leave

No free tier, and dynos cost more than newer platforms
Now in a sustaining engineering mode with few new features
Cheapest Eco dynos sleep when idle

Top Heroku alternatives

See all 6

1
Render
The most common Heroku replacement, with a similar model and a free tier.
66.5
2
Railway
Usage-based pricing and a polished dashboard for apps and databases.
62.6
3
Fly.io
Run apps as lightweight VMs in many regions, billed by the second.
59.6
4
Dokku
Open-source, self-hosted Heroku clone that accepts the same buildpacks.
57.2
5
DigitalOcean App Platform
Buildpack-based PaaS with predictable monthly container pricing.
55.3

Why people left Heroku

In reviewers' own words, from reviews of the apps they moved to. These are their opinions, not ours.

No switching stories yet. If you moved away from Heroku, review the app you switched to and tell us why.

Reviews

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Heroku: common questions

Is Heroku free?

No, Heroku is a paid product.

Is Heroku open source?

No, Heroku is not open source. Open-source alternatives include Dokku.

What platforms does Heroku run on?

Heroku is available for Web.

What are the best alternatives to Heroku?

The highest-ranked Heroku alternatives right now are Render, Railway and Fly.io. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.

See all 6 Heroku alternatives

Heroku facts

4 of 4 verified

Cheapest dyno: Eco, $5; Checked Oct 25, 2026heroku.com(opens source in a new tab); “Eco $5 0.5 GB”
Basic dyno: $7; Checked Oct 25, 2026heroku.com(opens source in a new tab); “Basic $7 0.5 GB”
Eco dyno sleep: After 30 minutes idle; Checked Oct 25, 2026heroku.com(opens source in a new tab); “Sleeps after 30 minutes of inactivity”
Engineering model: Sustaining engineering (since Feb 2026); Checked Oct 25, 2026heroku.com(opens source in a new tab); “Heroku is transitioning to a sustaining engineering model focused on stability, security, reliability, and support.”