DigitalOcean App Platform vs Render

Pricing data as of 2026-10-12 · refreshed weekly

DigitalOcean App Platform (paas) and Render (paas) overlap on 14 stacks. The table below shows the cheapest fitting plan on each for a typical startup workload (~50,000 visits/month) — list prices, no promos.

DigitalOcean App Platformpaas

Static site (free tier)$0/mo
Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB$5/mo
Shared 1 vCPU / 1GB (fixed)$10/mo
Shared 1 vCPU / 1GB$12/mo
Shared 1 vCPU / 2GB$25/mo
Shared 2 vCPU / 4GB$50/mo
CDNSSLAuto-deployDIY: image opt, edge, previews

Renderpaas

512 MB / 0.5 CPU$7/mo
2 GB / 1 CPU$25/mo
CDNSSLPreviewsAuto-deployDIY: image opt, edge

Cheapest fitting plan per stack (startup traffic)

StackDigitalOcean App PlatformRenderCheaper
Next.js$5.48 (Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB)$17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU)DigitalOcean App Platform
Nuxt$5.48 (Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB)$17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU)DigitalOcean App Platform
Astro$5.48 (Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB)$17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU)DigitalOcean App Platform
SvelteKit$5.48 (Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB)$17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU)DigitalOcean App Platform
Remix / React Router$5.48 (Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB)$17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU)DigitalOcean App Platform
Node.js API$5.48 (Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB)$17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU)DigitalOcean App Platform
Django$10 (Shared 1 vCPU / 1GB (fixed))$35.35 (2 GB / 1 CPU)DigitalOcean App Platform
FastAPI$5.48 (Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB)$17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU)DigitalOcean App Platform
Laravel$10 (Shared 1 vCPU / 1GB (fixed))$35.35 (2 GB / 1 CPU)DigitalOcean App Platform
Ruby on Rails$25 (Shared 1 vCPU / 2GB)$35.35 (2 GB / 1 CPU)DigitalOcean App Platform
Spring Boot$25 (Shared 1 vCPU / 2GB)$35.35 (2 GB / 1 CPU)DigitalOcean App Platform
Ghost$10 (Shared 1 vCPU / 1GB (fixed))$35.35 (2 GB / 1 CPU)DigitalOcean App Platform
Strapi$10 (Shared 1 vCPU / 1GB (fixed))$35.35 (2 GB / 1 CPU)DigitalOcean App Platform
Static site$1.46 (Static site (free tier))$17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU)DigitalOcean App Platform

Next.js by traffic level

TrafficDigitalOcean App PlatformRender
Hobby / side project (~5,000/mo)$5 (Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB)$7.45 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU)
Startup / small business (~50,000/mo)$5.48 (Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB)$17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU)
E-commerce (~200,000/mo)$19.64 (Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB)$123.55 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU)
High traffic (~1,000,000/mo)$33.3 (Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB)$226 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU)

"+" = even the largest plan may not cover that traffic. Full breakdowns: Next.js on DigitalOcean App Platform · Next.js on Render

FAQ

Is DigitalOcean App Platform or Render cheaper?

DigitalOcean App Platform is cheaper for all 14 stacks both can run, at startup traffic (~50,000 visits/month). Both are PaaS offerings, so compare what each bundles (below) as well as price.

What does a Next.js app cost on DigitalOcean App Platform vs Render?

Cheapest fitting plan by traffic level — hobby / side project: DigitalOcean App Platform $5/month (Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB) vs Render $7.45/month (512 MB / 0.5 CPU); startup / small business: DigitalOcean App Platform $5.48/month (Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB) vs Render $17.35/month (512 MB / 0.5 CPU); e-commerce: DigitalOcean App Platform $19.64/month (Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB) vs Render $123.55/month (512 MB / 0.5 CPU); high traffic: DigitalOcean App Platform $33.30/month (Shared 1 vCPU / 512MB) vs Render $226/month (512 MB / 0.5 CPU).

What is included with DigitalOcean App Platform and Render?

DigitalOcean App Platform bundles CDN, SSL, Auto-deploy; not included: Image opt, Edge, Previews. Render bundles CDN, SSL, Previews, Auto-deploy; not included: Image opt, Edge.

How current are these prices?

They are official list prices as of 2026-10-12, re-checked against each provider's pricing page on a weekly cycle. Intro promos and coupons are not used in totals; taxes are not included unless a plan note says so.

Cheaper DigitalOcean App Platform alternativesCheaper Render alternativesRun the numbers for your stack →

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