Koyeb vs Render (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Render grades higher than Koyeb: 2.4 against 1.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Render grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Render
Cloud hosting for web services, databases and workers
Which one is for you
Pick Koyeb if
- Fits if you deploy containers and want autoscaling
- Works for AI jobs that need GPUs and per-second billing
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a free plan
- Pricey if you run one small app, at $29 plus compute
- Watch out: the pricing page says Koyeb is joining Mistral AI and doesn't say what changes
- Watch out: private Slack support, SSO and RBAC are on higher plans, and the SLA starts at Scale, $299
- Watch out: the monthly total depends on usage
Pick Render if
- Fits if you want web services and Postgres together
- Works for backends that need cron jobs and background workers
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free: free instances have limits and 5 GB of bandwidth
- Pricey if you add it up: workspace plus each service's instance
- Watch out: full-stack previews and autoscaling need Pro
- Watch out: HIPAA workspaces, SAML SSO and SCIM start at $499 on Scale
- Watch out: no bandwidth overage price is named
How we grade them
| 1.8GPAKoyebWeak | 2.4GPARenderFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | D$29 a month plus compute on Pro, with $10 of compute included, against a category middle of $11. Scale is $299. | CPro is $25 a month plus compute, above the dearer quarter's $19 as a floor, but Hobby is $0. A $7 instance buys 512 MB RAM and Postgres starts at $6. |
| Free plan and trial | FNo free plan, apart from a 5-hour Postgres tier. | CHobby is $0 with up to 25 services, but free instance types come with limitations and bandwidth is 5 GB. |
| Features | BAutoscaling and scale-to-zero, GPUs, Postgres, 7 regions, GitHub and registry deploys, CLI, API and Terraform. Nothing core is missing in the listing. | BWeb services, workers, cron, Postgres, Key Value, previews, autoscaling, API and infrastructure as code. The listing names no core gap. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You connect repos or containers and pick instance sizes. | CNo store rating on record. You define services, instance types and databases. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, with GitHub, Docker, Terraform, Pulumi, Postgres and AWS. | BWeb only, with Docker, a CLI, a REST API and an MCP server. |
| Best for | autoscaling containers and GPUs on a usage bill | web services and Postgres in one place |
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: Koyeb and Render. How we grade
Price against what you get
Koyeb starts at $29 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Render starts at $25 a month and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and Render starts $4 a month lower. Of the other web hosts on the chart, none scores higher than Koyeb for less, and none scores higher than Render 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
- Render also covers databases and workflow automation.
At a glance
| Koyeb | Render | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Free plan |
| Starts at | $29 per month plus compute (Pro) | $25 per month plus compute (Pro workspace) |
| Free plan | None | Hobby workspace: $0 a month, up to 25 services, 5 GB of bandwidth, and free instance types for web services, Postgres and Key Value (limitations apply). |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Koyeb | Render |
| Price read from | koyeb.com | render.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Koyeb
- The plan fee is on top of compute, which is billed per second, so the monthly total depends on usage.
- The pricing page carries a banner saying Koyeb is joining Mistral AI; what that means for the product was not stated there.
- Private Slack support, SSO and RBAC are limited to higher plans, and an uptime SLA starts with Scale.
- No free plan is listed on the pricing page, apart from a 5-hour free Postgres tier.
Render
- The workspace fee is only part of the bill: every service pays for its instance, for example $7 a month for 512 MB RAM or $25 for 2 GB.
- Free instance types carry limitations, and Postgres on a paid plan starts at $6 a month for 256 MB RAM.
- HIPAA-compliant workspaces, SAML SSO and SCIM start on the $499 Scale plan.
- Bandwidth is included per workspace plan (5 GB, 25 GB, 1 TB), with the page naming no overage price.
Key features
Koyeb
- Serverless compute
- Apps run in autoscaling VMs on bare metal, with scale-to-zero and per-second billing, and deploy from a GitHub push or a container registry.
- GPU instances
- The pricing page lists GPUs from RTX-4000-SFF-ADA at $0.50 an hour up to 8x H200 at $24 an hour.
- Serverless Postgres
- Postgres instances are billed by the second, from a free 5-hour tier up to larger instances, with storage at $0.50 per GB a month.
- Seven regions
- Pro and Scale deploy to 7 regions in the US, EU and Asia; Scale adds AWS regions, and Enterprise lists 50 on-demand regions.
- Networking
- 1 TB of bandwidth a month is included, with extra at $0.02 per GB in the EU and US and $0.04 in Asia, plus automatic HTTPS, private networking and WebSockets.
- CLI, API and Terraform
- Deployment can be driven from the CLI, an API, Terraform or Pulumi.
Render
- Services and workers
- Web services, private services, background workers and cron jobs run Node, Python, Go, Rust, Ruby, Elixir or custom Docker containers.
- Managed Postgres and Key Value
- Fully managed PostgreSQL with point-in-time recovery and connection pooling, plus a Redis-compatible Key Value store.
- Preview environments
- Pull requests can get their own preview, single-service on Hobby and full-stack on Pro and above.
- Autoscaling and zero-downtime deploys
- Horizontal autoscaling is a Pro feature, and deploys are listed as zero downtime in the product menu.
- Infrastructure as code and API
- Services can be defined as code, managed with the Render CLI and REST API, or driven from an MCP server.
- Persistent disks
- SSD disks can be attached to services at $0.25 per GB per month.
Plans
Koyeb
Pro$29
per month, plus compute used
Includes $10 of compute, 10 users, 100 services, 5 concurrent builds, volumes and snapshots, and email and chat support.
Scale$299
per month, plus compute used
Includes $100 of compute, 50 users, 1,000 services, 20 concurrent builds, AWS regions, a Slack cross-connect and a 99.9% uptime SLA.
EnterpriseCustom
Starts at $1,000 a month, according to the page: private dedicated locations, unlimited users, SSO, RBAC, audit trail and 24x7 support.
Render
Hobby$0
per month, plus compute
Up to 25 services, 5 GB of bandwidth, single-service previews, custom domains, database PITR and chat support.
Pro$25
per month, plus compute
Unlimited seats and services, 25 GB of bandwidth, full-stack previews, horizontal autoscaling and isolated environments.
Scale$499
per month, plus compute
Multiple workspaces, 1 TB of bandwidth, HIPAA-compliant workspaces, SAML SSO and SCIM, and advanced RBAC roles.
EnterpriseCustom
Contractual uptime SLAs, a dedicated technical account team, a support Slack channel and support response SLAs.
Ways to pay less
Koyeb
- Startups
Up to $30k in credits for early-stage startups
The pricing page offers early-stage startups up to $30k in credits; the details are on a separate startup program page.
- Other savings
Up to 50% off with long-term reservations
The pricing page says saving plans with long-term reservations get up to 50% off on-demand prices, arranged through sales.
Render
- Startups
Up to $100K in credits for VC-funded startups
The pricing page links to Render for Startups, which offers up to $100K in credits to VC-funded startups.
- Other savings
Up to $10K in migration credits
Teams moving to Render can get up to $10K in credits through the migration program linked from the pricing page.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Koyeb or Render?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Render is cheaper to start with: $25 a month, against $29 a month for Koyeb. Koyeb starts at $29 per month plus compute (Pro), and Render starts at $25 per month plus compute (Pro workspace).
Which has a free plan, Koyeb or Render?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Render has a free plan. Koyeb 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.