Fly.io vs Stackhero (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Fly.io grades higher than Stackhero: 2.2 against 1.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Fly.io grades higher on the free plan. They get the same grade on value for money, features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Fly.io
Virtual machines and databases in 18 regions, billed per second
Stackhero
Managed hosting for Node.js, Docker, databases and open-source apps
Which one is for you
Pick Fly.io if
- Fits if you want machines near users in several regions and are fine on the command line
- Works for apps that stop when idle and pay by the second
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a free plan, as the trial is $1 for 7 days
- Not for you if you don't like a command line
- Pricey if you add a database: Managed Postgres starts at $38 a month
- Watch out: the prices quoted are for Ashburn and Secaucus, the cheapest regions, and a dedicated IPv4 is $2 a month
- Watch out: data out costs $0.02 per GB in North America and Europe and $0.12 in Africa and India
Pick Stackhero if
- Fits if you want a managed Node.js or database instance and hourly billing
- Works for developers who deploy by git push and want backups handled
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a free plan, because none is listed
- Tight if you run a tiny static site: sizes start at 1 vCPU and 1GB RAM
- Pricey if you stack services, since each one is billed separately, such as PostgreSQL from $19 a month
- Not for you if you don't use a terminal, as deploys are by git push
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAFly.ioFair | 1.8GPAStackheroWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C$2.19 a month buys a 256MB machine, but the vendor's own example of a small app with Managed Postgres is about $44 a month, and Postgres starts at $38. | CA Node.js instance is $15 a month, billed hourly, which sits between the $10.99 middle and the $20.83 dearer quarter. Larger sizes reach $299. |
| Free plan and trial | CNew accounts get $1 of credit for 7 days with no card. That's a taste, not a plan. | FNo free plan or trial. The buttons say Try now for free, but the pages read state no trial terms. |
| Features | BMachines in 18 regions, launch from a repo, Managed Postgres, volumes, snapshots and free shared IPv4. The listing names no gap in the core job. | BGit-push deploys, dedicated instances, daily backups kept up to 3 months, one-click updates and a 99.9% SLA across a large service catalog. Nothing in the listing is missing from the core hosting job. |
| Ease of use | DNo store rating on record. The flow is built around its command line and a Dockerfile. | DNo store rating on record. Deploys go through a terminal, GitHub Actions or CI, so you work on the command line. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, with GitHub, Slack, Tigris and Upstash and a CLI. | BWeb console with GitHub Actions, GitLab, Docker and database integrations, in US and EU regions. No desktop or phone apps. |
| Best for | small servers in many regions, billed by the second | managed app and database instances billed by the hour |
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: Fly.io and Stackhero. How we grade
Price against what you get
Fly.io starts at $2.19 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Stackhero starts at $15 a month and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and Fly.io starts $12.81 a month lower. Of the other web hosts on the chart, 1 scores higher than Fly.io for less, and 5 score higher than Stackhero 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
- Fly.io also covers AI agents.
- Stackhero also covers dashboards.
At a glance
| Fly.io | Stackhero | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Paid |
| Starts at | $2.19 per month for the smallest Machine, pay as you go | $15 per month for a Node.js instance (1 vCPU, 1GB RAM), billed hourly |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | New accounts get $1 of credit for 7 days, no card required. | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Fly.io | Stackhero |
| Price read from | fly.io | stackhero.io |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Fly.io
- There is no free plan; the trial is a $1 credit that lasts 7 days or until it is used up.
- Machine prices quoted are for Ashburn and Secaucus, the lowest-priced regions, and vary by region.
- Outbound data costs $0.02 per GB in North America and Europe and $0.12 per GB in Africa and India.
- A dedicated IPv4 address is $2 a month, and a small web app with Managed Postgres is about $44 a month by the vendor's own example.
Stackhero
- Each service is priced separately: a PostgreSQL instance, for example, starts at $19 a month and a Node.js instance at $15 a month.
- Sizes start at 1 vCPU and 1GB RAM, so there is no cheaper tier for very small static sites.
- Premium support is included in every plan, and the page states a 99.9% SLA with financial compensation.
- Buttons read 'Try now for free', but the pricing pages read for this listing state no trial terms.
Key features
Fly.io
- Fly Machines
- Fast-booting VMs for production apps, run in 18 regions, billed by the second while running and at a lower rate when stopped.
- Launch from GitHub or the CLI
- fly launch deploys an app from a repo or folder and generates a Dockerfile for many popular frameworks when none exists.
- Managed Postgres
- A managed database service, or you can run your own datastore on Machines with attached volumes.
- Sprites
- Hardware-isolated sandboxes that start quickly, stay on and scale to zero when idle, aimed at agents and untrusted code.
- Volumes and snapshots
- Persistent volumes cost $0.15 per GB a month and snapshots $0.08 per GB, with the first 10GB of snapshots free.
- Free shared IPv4 and certificates
- Apps get a shared IPv4 address and IPv6 addresses free, and the first 10 single-hostname SSL certificates are free.
Stackhero
- Deploy with git push
- Node.js apps are deployed from a terminal, GitHub Actions, GitLab or any CI/CD system, choosing a branch, tag or commit.
- Dedicated instances
- Each service runs on its own isolated infrastructure with NVMe or SSD disks, a dedicated IP, and TCP and UDP ports available.
- Large service catalog
- The catalog lists dozens of services, among them Docker, PHP, Python, Ruby, PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, Redis, Elasticsearch, GitLab, Nextcloud and Matomo.
- Backups and updates
- Backups are taken every 24 hours and kept for up to 3 months, restores are free, and updates are applied with one click.
- Hourly billing
- Instances can be created and deleted at any time, are billed by the hour and appear on one invoice at the end of the month.
- US and EU regions
- Servers are offered in the USA and in Europe, and the vendor says its hosting is independent of third-party clouds.
Plans
Fly.io
Pay As You Go$2.19
per month for a 256MB Machine, billed by the second
No platform fee. 512MB is $3.69, 1GB is $6.70 and 2GB is $13.39 a month in Ashburn and Secaucus; other regions cost more.
Managed Postgres$38
per month for the Basic cluster, plus $0.28/GB storage
Managed database clusters run from $38 a month (Basic) to $1,922 a month (Performance).
Standard support$29
per month
Optional paid support. Premium is $199 a month and Enterprise starts at $2,500 a month; community support is free.
Stackhero
Hobby 1 GB$15
per month for one Node.js instance, billed hourly
1 vCPU, 1GB RAM and 10GB SSD storage for a Node.js app; about $0.02 an hour.
Hobby 2 GB$29
per month for one Node.js instance, billed hourly
1 vCPU, 2GB RAM and 20GB SSD storage; about $0.04 an hour.
Startup 8 GB$59
per month for one Node.js instance, billed hourly
2 vCPUs, 8GB RAM and 50GB SSD storage; about $0.08 an hour.
Startup 16 GB$99
per month for one Node.js instance, billed hourly
4 vCPUs, 16GB RAM and 100GB SSD storage; about $0.14 an hour.
Enterprise 32 GB$159
per month for one Node.js instance, billed hourly
8 vCPUs, 32GB RAM and 200GB SSD storage; about $0.22 an hour.
Enterprise 64 GB$299
per month for one Node.js instance, billed hourly
16 vCPUs, 64GB RAM and 400GB SSD storage; about $0.42 an hour.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Fly.io or Stackhero?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Fly.io is cheaper to start with: $2.19 a month, against $15 a month for Stackhero. Fly.io starts at $2.19 per month for the smallest Machine, pay as you go, and Stackhero starts at $15 per month for a Node.js instance (1 vCPU, 1GB RAM), billed hourly.
Which has a free plan, Fly.io or Stackhero?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither Fly.io nor Stackhero has a free plan. Fly.io has a free trial.
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.