Dokku is an extensible, open-source Platform-as -a -Service that runs on a single server of your choice.
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Vercel
Score 9.8 out of 10
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Vercel (made by the creators of Next.js) is a cloud platform for static sites and Serverless Functions for a workflow. It enables developers to host websites and web services that deploy instantly, scale automatically, and requires no supervision, all with no configuration.
The platform aims to enable frontend teams to work while combining the best developer experience with a focus on end-user performance.
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Pricing
Dokku
Vercel
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Dokku
Vercel
Free Trial
No
Yes
Free/Freemium Version
No
Yes
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
No
No
Entry-level Setup Fee
No setup fee
No setup fee
Additional Details
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More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Dokku
Vercel
Features
Dokku
Vercel
Platform-as-a-Service
Comparison of Platform-as-a-Service features of Product A and Product B
If you have your own in-house servers or have a cloud server with the freedom to configure any PaaS that you want, then Dokku is for you. So far, I have never run into a scenario where Dokku was not able to fit my needs, after deploying many different types of applications with varying frameworks, languages, and connected services. If you already have a PaaS available, however, Dokku may not be for you.
I've had nothing but positive experiences with Vercel, and while their business offering is great, it's also worth touching on their free plan. Their free plan allows me to tinker with web development in my free time without having to worry about paying for a costly linux box. I just link a GitHub repository and it's done!
Dokku might overreach on its assumptions about how you want to host your app, using its own VHOSTS plugin by default. This may be a pro or a con depending on what you want.
Proxy port configuration can be somewhat difficult, with Dokku resetting any pre-deployment configuration to "smart" defaults on the first deployment.
Vercel's good usability and developer experience make me happy to visit their website when I need to configure my deployments. It's very easy to navigate, configure, and manage my projects, and the developer experience is so seamless that I don't have to think much when I push changes to git.
Dokku is incredibly well documented and also takes advantage of the documentation and community of Heroku, being essentially the same thing, but in the case that you encounter an actual bug or issue, it can take time for a fix to make it into a new version. Since you manage Dokku yourself, there is no support team to call for help.
Dokku is essentially the same thing as Heroku, except maintained by you on the platform of your choice. If you have any experience using Heroku, then you will feel right at home using Dokku. Dokku is an entirely free to use PaaS, requiring only that you have a platform to deploy it on, making it far more versatile than Heroku in my opinion.
Vercel beats Heroku and DigitalOcean by a mile with pricing. Since Vercel uses serverless infrastructure, we don't pay for servers that don't get used, which is great for smaller platforms. Vercel Support is also very quick to respond, unlike DigitalOcean who took a while to get back to me after they didn't honor platform credits they sent me.
