Railway vs Vercel: Which One Fits Your Solo Dev Stack?
Free tier limits, real costs for 1-10 users, and honest "not for" warnings. The Solo Dev decision guide for Railway vs Vercel.
⚡ Quick Verdict
Vercel edges ahead with a 4.8/5 rating. However, the best choice depends on your team size, budget, and workflow needs. Read on for the full breakdown.
💰 Cost by Team Size
| Team Size | Railway | Vercel |
|---|---|---|
| Solo (1 user) | $5/mo | $0/mo |
| Small (5 users) | $100/mo | $100/mo |
| Growing (10 users) | $200/mo | $200/mo |
| Free Tier | ✅ $5 free credit/month. 500 execution hours. 1GB RAM. | ✅ 100GB bandwidth/month. 100 deployments/day. 10s function timeout. |
Pricing Plans
| Plan | Railway | Vercel |
|---|---|---|
| Free Plan | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Hobby | $5/mo | $20/mo |
| Pro | $20/mo | Custom |
| Enterprise | Custom | — |
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Railway | Vercel |
|---|---|---|
| DX | ★★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
Pros & Cons
Railway
✅ Pros
- One-click database deployment (Postgres, Redis, MongoDB)
- Usage-based pricing — pay for what you use
- Excellent developer experience
- Docker and Nixpacks support
- Built-in CI/CD from Git
❌ Cons
- $5 free credit burns fast with databases
- No free tier for production use
- Limited to 500 hours on trial
- Scaling costs can surprise you
- Fewer regions than AWS/GCP
Vercel
✅ Pros
- Zero-config deployment for Next.js
- Free tier generous for personal projects
- Preview deployments on every PR
- Edge Functions for global performance
- Automatic HTTPS and CDN
❌ Cons
- Pro at $20/user/mo adds up
- 10s function timeout on free
- Bandwidth overages are expensive
- Vendor lock-in risk
Who Should Use What?
✅ Choose Railway if...
- You are a full-stack apps needing backend + database
- You are a hobby projects with databases
- You are a teams wanting paas simplicity
🚫 Skip if...
- Static sites (Vercel/Netlify are free)
- Enterprise with compliance needs
- Cost-predictability requirements
✅ Choose Vercel if...
- You are a solo devs deploying next.js
- You are a frontend teams
- You are a startups needing fast iteration
🚫 Skip if...
- Backend-heavy apps
- Long-running jobs
- Cost-sensitive at scale
🏆 Our Verdict
Both Railway (4.7/5) and Vercel (4.8/5) are excellent tools in their category. Vercel takes a slight edge overall, but the best choice ultimately depends on your team's specific needs, budget, and existing tool ecosystem.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Railway better than Vercel?
It depends on your needs. Railway excels in some areas while Vercel has its own strengths. Read our full comparison above to see which tool fits your specific requirements.
How does Railway pricing compare to Vercel?
Railway starts at Free / $5/mo, while Vercel starts at Free / $20/mo. Both offer different value propositions — check our pricing comparison section for a detailed breakdown.
Can I migrate from Railway to Vercel?
Yes, most B2B tools offer data import/export features. Vercel typically provides migration guides and sometimes even dedicated support for switching from Railway.
Which is easier to use, Railway or Vercel?
Ease of use depends on your team's experience and workflow preferences. We evaluated both tools on usability — see our feature comparison scores above for details.
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