Heroku vs Vercel: Pricing Comparison 2026
Side-by-side pricing comparison of Heroku and Vercel. See all plans, features, and costs at a glance.
Bottom line: Heroku starts at $5/mo and Vercel starts at Custom pricing. Compare all 7 pricing tiers side by side.
Last updated: March 23, 2026
Heroku vs Vercel: Quick Pricing Facts
| Feature | Heroku | Vercel |
|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | $5/mo | Custom pricing |
| Number of Plans | 4 | 3 |
| Free Tier | No | No |
| Pricing Model | usage-based | per-seat |
| Annual Discount | N/A | N/A |
Heroku and Vercel are both priced at $5/mo, making them equally accessible Hosting & Infra tools. Together they offer 7 pricing plans with 14 features compared, so the best choice comes down to which features match your needs.
Heroku uses usage-based pricing while Vercel uses per-seat pricing, which may affect your total cost at scale.
Review the detailed tier-by-tier comparison above to see exactly which features are included at each price point and find the best fit for your Hosting & Infra needs.
| Pricing Plans |  Heroku Try it free |  Vercel Try it free |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 | Hobby Custom pricing | |
| Tier 2 | ProPopular Custom pricing | |
| Tier 3 | Standard 1xPopular $25/monthCheapest Includes
| Enterprise Custom pricing |
| Tier 4 | Performance M $250/monthCheapest Includes
| — |
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What Reviewers Say
Which Should You Choose?
Choose Heroku if:
- •You need to deploy backend applications — Rails, Django, Express, or any language that runs in a container
- •Managed add-ons for PostgreSQL, Redis, Kafka, and 200+ services simplify your infrastructure
- •Your team values Heroku's mature deployment model: git push, buildpacks, and 12-factor app methodology
- •You need horizontal scaling with multiple dynos, background workers, and scheduled jobs
Choose Vercel if:
- •You deploy frontend frameworks — Next.js, Nuxt, SvelteKit — and want zero-config with optimized builds
- •Preview deployments per branch, instant rollbacks, and framework-aware optimization are daily workflow tools
- •Edge Functions and Middleware run globally for sub-millisecond latency on personalization and auth
- •Vercel Pro at $20/user/month covers most web applications without Heroku's per-dyno cost model
Heroku and Vercel represent different eras and architectures of web deployment. Heroku is the original PaaS — deploy any application with git push, attach managed databases and services, and scale with dynos. Basic dynos start at $7/month. Standard at $25/month adds horizontal scaling. Performance at $250/month adds dedicated compute. Managed Postgres starts at $5/month. Vercel is a frontend-first deployment platform. Hobby (free) includes 100GB bandwidth and serverless functions. Pro at $20/user/month adds 1TB bandwidth, team features, and advanced analytics. Enterprise adds SLAs and custom limits. Vercel's serverless functions handle backend logic without managing servers. The architectures are fundamentally different. Heroku runs persistent processes — your Express server stays alive, your Rails app keeps database connections open, your background workers process queues continuously. Vercel runs ephemeral functions — each request spins up, executes, and terminates. Long-running processes, WebSocket connections, and stateful services do not fit Vercel's model. For applications that need persistent backend processes, managed databases, and add-on services, Heroku's traditional PaaS model is the right abstraction. For frontend applications built with modern frameworks that leverage serverless architecture, Vercel's optimized DX and edge network deliver superior performance and developer experience.
Frequently Asked Questions: Heroku vs Vercel
How many pricing plans does Heroku have vs Vercel?
What is the most popular Heroku plan?
What is the most popular Vercel plan?
Does Heroku or Vercel offer custom enterprise pricing?
What pricing models do Heroku and Vercel use?
How do Heroku and Vercel compare for Hosting & Infra?
Sources
- Heroku Official Pricing— Vendor pricing page
- Vercel Official Pricing— Vendor pricing page
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