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DigitalOcean App Platform vs Vercel

DigitalOcean App Platform is $15/mo cheaper.

That’s $180/year. Vercel costs 4× as much.

DigitalOcean App Platform logo: Git-based PaaS to build, deploy, and scale apps without managing servers.
DigitalOcean App Platform logo: Git-based PaaS to build, deploy, and scale apps without managing servers.

DigitalOcean App Platform

Est. $5/mo

Git-based PaaS to build, deploy, and scale apps without managing servers.

Try it

Pros of DigitalOcean App Platform

  • Less ops than raw Droplets

  • Simple pricing for small apps

  • Works well with the DO ecosystem

Cons of DigitalOcean App Platform

  • Less flexible than a full VPS

  • Not as frontend-focused as Vercel

Vercel logo: Hosting that builds a preview URL for every Git push, especially Next.js apps.
Vercel logo: Hosting that builds a preview URL for every Git push, especially Next.js apps.

Vercel

Est. $20/mo

Hosting that builds a preview URL for every Git push, especially Next.js apps.

Try it

Pros of Vercel

  • A branch gets a URL without extra setup

  • Next.js features work without a custom server

  • Connects to the GitHub repo directly

Cons of Vercel

  • Long-running workers and custom VMs are a poor fit

  • The bill climbs once you leave the hobby limits