Heroku
Application hosting platform: you push the code, Heroku builds and runs it. Dynos start at $5 a month (Eco, which sleeps after 30 minutes of inactivity) and $7 (Basic).
Coolify and Dokku give the same experience on your own VPS: one push and the app is deployed, with a database and HTTPS. For a few applications, it is half a day and a cost divided several times over. What you lose: a managed service (outages, security patches, backups) and one-click add-ons. If you have nobody to administer a server, stay on Heroku.
What you lose
- A managed service: security patches, backups, recovery after an outage
- Add-ons installed in one click
- Scaling without touching the server
Existing alternatives to Heroku
- CoolifyOpen source
Self-hosted deployment platform (Apache-2.0): applications, databases and HTTPS from a Git repository.
- DokkuOpen source
Mini-PaaS on a single server (MIT): git push to deploy, in the spirit of Heroku.
- CapRoverOpen source
Deployment platform on your server (Apache-2.0): apps, databases and HTTPS in a few clicks.
The prompt to build it yourself
Set up a self-hosted deployment platform to replace Heroku on my VPS. Do not build a platform: install Coolify (or Dokku if you judge it better suited to my case). To do: - Installation on my Ubuntu VPS, with access restricted by SSH key and a firewall allowing only 22, 80 and 443. - Deployment of a first application from my Git repository, with automatic HTTPS on my domain. - A PostgreSQL database with a nightly encrypted backup copied off the server; write restore.sh and have me run a restore test. - Environment variables managed in the tool, never in the repository. - Migration of my application and its database from Heroku. Out of scope: autoscaling, multiple servers. README: deployment, restore, update, and a reminder that I am now responsible for the server's security patches.
Frequently asked questions
- Can Heroku be replaced by a custom-built tool?
- casevibecode verdict: Partly replaceable. Coolify and Dokku give the same experience on your own VPS: one push and the app is deployed, with a database and HTTPS. For a few applications, it is half a day and a cost divided several times over. What you lose: a managed service (outages, security patches, backups) and one-click add-ons. If you have nobody to administer a server, stay on Heroku.
- What is Heroku used for?
- Application hosting platform: you push the code, Heroku builds and runs it. Dynos start at $5 a month (Eco, which sleeps after 30 minutes of inactivity) and $7 (Basic).
- What alternatives to Heroku already exist?
- Coolify (open source), Dokku (open source), CapRover (open source). Options to compare before committing to a custom build.
Community feedback
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