GridPane vs Laravel Forge (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, GridPane grades higher than Laravel Forge: 2.4 against 1.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
GridPane 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.
GridPane
WordPress server control panel with a free core plan
Laravel Forge
Server management and deploys for Laravel, PHP and Node apps
Which one is for you
Pick GridPane if
- Fits if you run many WordPress sites on servers you control
- Works for developers who want Git, WP-CLI and staging tools
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want hosting in one price, since you pay a server provider too
- Not for you if you host anything other than WordPress
- Tight if you're on Core: tickets, monitoring and backups need PeakFreq
- Watch out: the Panel and Developer Plus plans are closed to new sign-ups
Pick Laravel Forge if
- Fits if you run Laravel apps and want flat-rate server management
- Works for solo developers with many apps on their own cloud accounts
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a free plan or trial
- Watch out: servers are billed separately
- Tight if you use other clouds: Hobby has 1 external server
- Pricey if you want shared-server discounts, as Laravel VPS discounts start at Growth ($19)
- Watch out: only monthly prices could be read
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAGridPaneFair | 1.8GPALaravel ForgeWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CCore is $0 for up to 25 sites, but you also pay a server provider, so it's free only if you bring a server. PeakFreq managed servers start at $19 a month. | C$12 a month on Hobby, about the category middle ($11), with servers billed separately by your provider or Laravel VPS. Growth is $19 and Business $39. |
| Free plan and trial | BCore is free forever, with page caching, Redis, a firewall, SSL and cloning. Server costs are on top. | FNo free plan or trial on the pricing page. |
| Features | CCaching, firewall, staging, cloning, Git and WP-CLI. It does the WordPress server job fully, but WordPress is all it does, and support tickets, monitoring and backups are paid. | CServer setup, zero-downtime deploys, queues, databases, SSL and an API. It does the server-management job fully, but that's a smaller job than hosting, and Hobby limits you to 1 external server. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You connect a server provider and set up servers before sites go live. | CNo store rating on record. You connect a cloud account and set up servers and sites. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, with Vultr, WordPress, WP-CLI and Git. | BWeb only, with DigitalOcean, AWS, Hetzner and a documented REST API. |
| Best for | a control panel for many WordPress sites | managing Laravel and PHP servers |
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: GridPane and Laravel Forge. How we grade
Price against what you get
GridPane starts at $19 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Laravel Forge starts at $12 a month and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and Laravel Forge starts $7 a month lower. Of the other web hosts on the chart, 6 score higher than GridPane for less, and 3 score higher than Laravel Forge 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
- GridPane also covers managed WordPress and page speed.
- Laravel Forge also covers workflow automation.
At a glance
| GridPane | Laravel Forge | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Paid |
| Starts at | $19 per month and up (PeakFreq) | $12 per month (Hobby, monthly billing) |
| Free plan | Core plan: free forever, up to 25 websites on your own Vultr server or a managed PeakFreq server, with server page caching, Redis object caching, a 7G firewall, SSL certificates and cloning. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | GridPane, Inc | Laravel |
| Price read from | gridpane.com | laravel.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
GridPane
- The free Core plan does not include server costs; you pay your provider, and Vultr is the one the plans page names.
- The Panel and Developer Plus plans are no longer open for sign-up, according to the plans page FAQ.
- Support ticket access, server monitoring and backups are listed under the paid PeakFreq plan, not Core.
- It is built for WordPress; no other platforms are advertised.
Laravel Forge
- Forge is a paid service with no free plan or trial listed on its pricing page.
- You also pay your cloud provider, or Laravel VPS charges, for the servers themselves.
- Hobby includes only 1 external server; unlimited external servers start with Growth at $19 a month.
- The pricing page has a Monthly and an Annual toggle; the annual figures could not be read, so only monthly prices are listed.
Key features
GridPane
- Caching and firewall
- The Core plan lists server page caching, Redis object caching, a 7G firewall and A+ grade SSL certificates.
- Staging and cloning
- The site lists cloning tools and advanced staging, with Git, GP-CLI and WP-CLI for developers.
- Backups
- Local and remote backups are listed among the management features, and PeakFreq includes them.
- Snapshot Failover
- A Snapshot Failover feature is listed under management, along with full log access and one-click phpMyAdmin.
- Managed servers
- PeakFreq servers are run by GridPane on Vultr; the page also describes a service of fully managed single-site hosting.
- Multitenancy
- The site describes converting a site network into a software-as-a-service setup that manages thousands of sites from one codebase.
Laravel Forge
- Laravel VPS
- A one-click server option that Forge says is set up in under 10 seconds, with Nginx, PHP, MySQL or Postgres and Redis installed, and a shared web terminal.
- Zero-downtime deploys
- Deploys can be scripted, queued and stacked, and zero-downtime deployments are included for a single server.
- Bring your own cloud
- Servers can also be created at providers such as DigitalOcean, AWS and Hetzner, though on Hobby only one external server is included.
- Databases and queues
- Forge can provision, back up and monitor database clusters, and supervises queue workers without manual Supervisor setup.
- SSL and hosted domains
- Free automated SSL is included, along with on-forge.com hosted domains for launching an app before domain setup.
- API
- A documented REST API covers servers, deployments, databases, firewall rules, backups, monitors and other resources.
Plans
GridPane
Core$0
Up to 25 websites. You pay your server provider separately, or use a PeakFreq managed server.
PeakFreq$19
per month and up
Fully managed high-frequency servers built with Vultr. Adds support ticket access, server monitoring, staging features and local and remote backups.
Bespoke Hosting$2000
per year and up
Fully managed, tailor-made hosting for WordPress with pre-emptive support, done-for-you security, agency partnerships and top-tier SLAs.
Laravel Forge
Hobby$12
per month, monthly billing
Unlimited Laravel VPS servers, 1 external server, unlimited sites and deployments, managed databases and community support.
Growth$19
per month, monthly billing
Unlimited servers, 5% discount on Laravel VPS and standard support, plus the other features of Hobby.
Business$39
per month, monthly billing
Unlimited servers, 15% discount on Laravel VPS and advanced support.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, GridPane or Laravel Forge?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Laravel Forge is cheaper to start with: $12 a month, against $19 a month for GridPane. GridPane starts at $19 per month and up (PeakFreq), and Laravel Forge starts at $12 per month (Hobby, monthly billing).
Which has a free plan, GridPane or Laravel Forge?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only GridPane has a free plan. Laravel Forge does not.
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.