Cloudron vs Coolify (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Coolify grades higher than Cloudron: 2.4 against 2.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Coolify grades higher on the free plan and features. They get the same grade on value for money, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Cloudron
Self-hosted platform for installing and updating apps on your server
Coolify
Open-source platform to deploy apps and databases to your own servers
Which one is for you
Pick Cloudron if
- Fits if you want to run a few open-source apps on your own server with updates handled
- Makes sense if you are comfortable renting and securing a server but don't want to hand-configure each app
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you don't want to run a server, because Cloudron is software you install and maintain
- Tight if you need more than 2 apps, as the free plan stops there
- Pricey if you want groups, roles or a directory server, which need Max at 25 euros a month
- Watch out: prices are in euros, exclude VAT, and the install page asks for Ubuntu 26.04 with 2 GB RAM and 20 GB disk
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
| 2.0GPACloudronFair | 2.4GPACoolifyFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPro is 15 euros a month billed yearly, in the middle of web hosting at $10.99 to $20.83. The server is paid for separately, and the free plan is only free if you host it yourself. | 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 | CA free plan for two apps, which is a cap you will hit quickly. There is no trial, and you still pay for a server. | BThe self-hosted edition has every feature with no restrictions, once you have a server. Cloud has no trial on record. |
| Features | CApp installs, updates, backups, a firewall, mail and single sign-on. Groups and roles, a directory server and multiple backup sites need Max, and the free plan has no more than two apps. | 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 | DNo store rating on record. You install it on a fresh Ubuntu server with at least 2 GB RAM and a domain, so it means self-hosting. | DNeeds servers reached over SSH and self-hosting, with community support. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, but backups can go to Amazon S3, Google Cloud Storage or DigitalOcean Spaces, and the App Store carries apps such as Immich and Vaultwarden. | BA web dashboard with an API, an MCP server and several integrations. |
| Best for | running a few self-hosted apps on one Ubuntu server | 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: Cloudron and Coolify. How we grade
Price against what you get
Cloudron starts at about $16.76 a month and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Coolify starts at $5 a month and scores 2.3.
Coolify scores higher and starts $11.76 a month lower. Of the other web hosts on the chart, 42 score higher than Cloudron 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, according to its own site.
- Cloudron also covers dMARC.
- Coolify also covers databases.
At a glance
| Cloudron | Coolify | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | €15 per month, billed yearly (€30 billed monthly), excluding VAT | $5 per month for up to 2 connected servers (Cloud), or free to self-host |
| Free plan | Two apps. | 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 | Cloudron UG (haftungsbeschränkt) | Coolify |
| Price read from | cloudron.io | coolify.io |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Cloudron
- Cloudron is installed on your own server, so the hosting bill is separate; the install page asks for a fresh Ubuntu 26.04 server with at least 2GB RAM and 20GB disk, plus a domain.
- The Free plan stops at two apps.
- User groups and roles, a directory server and multiple backup sites need the Max plan.
- Prices exclude VAT where applicable and are shown in euros.
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
Cloudron
- App Store installs
- Apps are installed from the Cloudron App Store without writing Dockerfiles or provisioning databases by hand.
- Timely updates
- The company says it publishes new app releases within days and security fixes within 24 hours, pulled by your server rather than pushed.
- User management
- Users can be invited and given access to chosen apps, with a dashboard that lists the apps they can open.
- Built-in mail server
- Includes catch-all addresses, aliases, per-domain relays, delivery logs and spam filtering rules, with DKIM, SPF and DMARC set up automatically.
- Backups and portability
- Encrypted backups can go to external storage such as Amazon S3, Google Cloud Storage or DigitalOcean Spaces, and a whole server can be moved to another provider.
- Firewall and audit
- A built-in firewall and an audit log of events are included on every plan.
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
Cloudron
Free€0
Run up to two apps on your own server.
Pro€15
per month, billed yearly (€30 billed monthly)
Unlimited apps with app updates, per-app backups, firewall, email solution and single sign-on. Excludes VAT where applicable.
Max€25
per month, billed yearly (€50 billed monthly)
Everything in Pro plus user groups and roles, a directory server, multiple backup sites and VPN-only app access.
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
Cloudron
- Annual discount
Yearly billing halves the monthly price
Pro is €15 a month billed yearly against €30 billed monthly, and Max is €25 against €50.
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, Cloudron or Coolify?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Coolify is cheaper to start with: $5 a month, against about $16.76 a month for Cloudron. Cloudron starts at €15 per month, billed yearly (€30 billed monthly), excluding VAT, and Coolify starts at $5 per month for up to 2 connected servers (Cloud), or free to self-host.
Which has a free plan, Cloudron or Coolify?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Cloudron 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.