Appliku vs Coolify (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Coolify grades higher than Appliku: 2.4 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Appliku grades higher on ease of use. Coolify grades higher on the free plan and features. They get the same grade on value for money and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Appliku
Django deployment dashboard that runs apps on servers you own
Coolify
Open-source platform to deploy apps and databases to your own servers
Which one is for you
Pick Appliku if
- Fits if you build Django apps and want to host on your own cloud account
- Works for developers who want a CLI or API driving the deploys
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you don't use Django, as the product is built for it
- Tight if you stay free: 1 app and 3 successful deploys a week
- Watch out: servers are billed separately by the cloud provider you connect
- Watch out: cron jobs and database backups start at Growth, $18 a month
- Watch out: orders go through Paddle, and refunds are given only for a technical problem Appliku cannot resolve
Pick Coolify if
- Fits if you have your own servers and want a deploy dashboard
- Works for developers comfortable with SSH and Docker
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you do not have a server, as neither edition supplies one
- Not for you if you want someone else to handle updates and backups when self-hosting
- Tight if you want fast support, as it is community plus limited email on Cloud
- Pricey if you add many servers on Cloud, at $3 a month each past two
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAApplikuFair | 2.4GPACoolifyFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CHobby is $10 a month ($100 a year), level with the $10.99 middle of hosting. That is Appliku's fee only; the server is billed by your cloud provider on top. | CFree software, but only free if you host it yourself on a server you pay for. Cloud is $5 a month for 2 servers, then $3 each. |
| Free plan and trial | CFree plan: 1 server, 1 application and 3 successful deployments a week, with community support. You will hit the deploy cap. | BThe self-hosted edition has every feature with no restrictions, once you have a server. Cloud has no trial on record. |
| Features | CGit deploys, Celery workers, cron jobs, PostgreSQL, Redis and RabbitMQ, a CLI and an API. It targets Django only, and cron and database backups start at Growth. | BGit deploys, builds, one-click databases and services, SSL, backups, monitoring, an API and an MCP server. The listing shows no gap in the core job. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You connect a Git host and a cloud account or SSH server before the first deploy. | DNeeds servers reached over SSH and self-hosting, with community support. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb dashboard with GitHub, GitLab, DigitalOcean, AWS and Hetzner, plus a CLI and API. No desktop or phone apps. | BA web dashboard with an API, an MCP server and several integrations. |
| Best for | deploying Django apps to your own servers | self-hosting your own apps and databases |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Appliku and Coolify. How we grade
Price against what you get
Appliku starts at $8.33 a month when paid by the year and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Coolify starts at $5 a month and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and Coolify starts $3.33 a month lower. Of the other web hosts on the chart, 2 score higher than Appliku for less, and 1 scores higher than Coolify for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Coolify is open source and self-hostable, according to its own site.
At a glance
| Appliku | Coolify | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $10 per month, or $100 a year (Hobby) | $5 per month for up to 2 connected servers (Cloud), or free to self-host |
| Free plan | 1 server, 1 application and 3 successful deployments per week, with unlimited databases and community support. | The self-hosted edition is free forever with every feature and no restrictions; you run it on your own infrastructure. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Appliku | Coolify |
| Price read from | appliku.com | coolify.io |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Appliku
- Built for Django; other frameworks are not what the product page describes.
- The server itself is billed separately by the cloud provider you connect; the plans here cover Appliku's fee only.
- The Free plan allows 1 application and 3 successful deployments a week, and cron jobs and database backups start at Growth.
- Orders are handled by Paddle as merchant of record; refunds are given only for a technical problem Appliku cannot resolve.
Coolify
- Coolify does not supply servers: both editions need servers you bring, and Cloud charges $3 a month for each server beyond the first two.
- Self-hosting means you handle installation, updates and backups, with community support.
- Cloud support is described as community plus limited email support.
- Some pricing FAQ answers, including trial and discount questions, were not readable on the page, so no trial is recorded.
Key features
Appliku
- Git-based deployments
- Code is deployed from GitHub, GitLab or a custom Git server, and each push can start a repeatable release.
- Your own servers
- Apps run on servers in a cloud account you connect, such as DigitalOcean, AWS or Hetzner, or on any Ubuntu or Debian machine reachable by SSH.
- Django process types
- Web processes (Gunicorn or Uvicorn), Celery workers and beat, release commands and cron jobs are run from one dashboard.
- Databases and queues
- PostgreSQL, Redis and RabbitMQ can be created beside the app, with credentials managed and scheduled backups on paid plans.
- CLI, API and AI agents
- A CLI and API cover the same tasks as the dashboard, and an Appliku skill is offered so AI coding agents can deploy and read logs.
- Free migration
- Every paid plan includes a done-for-you migration of an existing app onto a server you own.
Coolify
- Deploy from Git
- Integrations with GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket and Gitea give push-to-deploy and separate deployments for pull requests.
- Flexible builds
- Applications can be built with Nixpacks, Railpack, a Dockerfile or Docker Compose, served as static sites, or run from a prebuilt Docker image.
- One-click databases and services
- PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, MongoDB, Redis, KeyDB, Dragonfly and ClickHouse start in seconds, alongside a catalog of 360+ one-click services.
- Any server over SSH
- Resources can be deployed to your own server, a VPS, a Raspberry Pi or providers such as Hetzner and DigitalOcean, across one or many servers.
- SSL, backups and monitoring
- Let's Encrypt certificates renew automatically, databases back up to S3-compatible storage, and servers and deployments are monitored with notifications.
- API and MCP server
- An API automates deployments and resources, and an MCP server lets AI clients list resources, deploy and read logs with the same API tokens.
Plans
Appliku
Free$0
1 server, 1 application, 3 successful deployments a week, unlimited databases, Celery and other queue workers, community support.
Hobby$10
per month, or $100 a year
1 server, unlimited applications and deployments, cluster deployment, custom domains, unlimited team members and email support.
Growth$18
per month, or $180 a year
Everything in Hobby, plus 3 servers, cron jobs and database backups.
Business$39
per month, or $390 a year
Everything in Growth, plus 6 servers.
Enterprise$159
per month, or $1590 a year
Everything in Business, plus unlimited servers and priority support with a 24-hour first response.
Coolify
Self-hosted$0
Install Coolify yourself on your own infrastructure with all features and unlimited servers and teams. Support comes from the community, and you handle updates and backups.
Cloud$5
per month for up to 2 servers, then $3 per extra server
Coolify hosts the dashboard at app.coolify.io; you bring your own servers. Unlimited deployments, email alerts, and limited email support.
Ways to pay less
Appliku
- Annual discount
Two months free on yearly billing
Yearly prices are ten times the monthly price, for example Hobby at $100 a year against $10 a month.
Coolify
- Annual discount
20% off Cloud with annual billing
The pricing page's billing toggle marks annual billing as 20% cheaper than monthly for Coolify Cloud.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Appliku or Coolify?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Coolify is cheaper to start with: $5 a month, against $8.33 a month when paid by the year for Appliku. Appliku starts at $10 per month, or $100 a year (Hobby), and Coolify starts at $5 per month for up to 2 connected servers (Cloud), or free to self-host.
Which has a free plan, Appliku or Coolify?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Appliku and Coolify have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.