Render vs Upsun (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Render grades higher than Upsun: 2.4 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Render grades higher on ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan, features 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
Upsun
Application cloud priced by provisioned resources
Which one is for you
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
Pick Upsun if
- Fits if your team wants a preview environment for every branch
- Works for developers who deploy across several clouds
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you want a simple site host, as projects are configured in files
- Watch out: the total is a project fee plus users plus CPU, memory, storage and bandwidth
- Watch out: Elasticsearch and MongoDB are premium services that need a minimum commitment and sales
- Watch out: the page opened in euros, and object storage is not available on trial projects
How we grade them
| 2.4GPARenderFair | 2.2GPAUpsunFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | 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. | CEUR 9 per project plus EUR 10 per user a month, plus CPU, memory, storage and bandwidth, so one person lands around the top of the category. |
| Free plan and trial | CHobby is $0 with up to 25 services, but free instance types come with limitations and bandwidth is 5 GB. | CA 15-day trial with no card, covering 1 project fee and 1 user license. |
| Features | BWeb services, workers, cron, Postgres, Key Value, previews, autoscaling, API and infrastructure as code. The listing names no core gap. | BPreview environments, multicloud deployment, backups and access management cover the whole job. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You define services, instance types and databases. | DNo store rating on record, and projects are set up with configuration files. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, with Docker, a CLI, a REST API and an MCP server. | BWeb and API, with AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, IBM Cloud and OVHcloud as hosts and Okta for sign-in. |
| Best for | web services and Postgres in one place | an application cloud for developer teams |
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: Render and Upsun. How we grade
Price against what you get
Render starts at $25 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Upsun starts at about $10.05 a month and scores 2.3.
Render scores higher, and starts $14.95 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other web hosts on the chart, none scores higher than Render for less, and 3 score higher than Upsun 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
At a glance
| Render | Upsun | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $25 per month plus compute (Pro workspace) | €9 per project / month plus €10 per user / month, plus resources |
| Free plan | 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). | None |
| Free trial | None listed | 15-day free trial with no card; a monthly credit covers 1 project fee and 1 user license |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Render | Upsun |
| Price read from | render.com | upsun.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
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.
Upsun
- The page opened in euros and offers GBP, USD, CAD and AUD; the figures here are the euro prices shown.
- Costs depend on what you provision: a project's total is the project fee plus users, CPU, memory, storage and bandwidth.
- Elasticsearch and MongoDB are premium managed services that need a minimum commitment and contact with sales.
- Object storage is not available on trial projects.
Key features
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.
Upsun
- Preview environments
- Every Git branch can get a full-stack environment, and on-demand preview environments are part of the project fee.
- Provisioned resources, billed per second
- Shared CPU is €0.033 an hour and 1 GB of application memory €0.013 an hour, billed per second on what is allocated.
- Multicloud deployment
- Projects can be placed on AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, IBM Cloud or OVHcloud, with a 3% credit in six greener regions.
- Storage and backups
- Disk is €0.49 per GB a month per environment, backups €0.10 per GB, and object storage €0.0833 per GB with a 512 GB minimum.
- Access management
- Advanced user management adds teams, MFA enforcement and single sign-on through Google or OIDC providers such as Entra ID and Okta.
Plans
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.
Upsun
Project fee€9.00
per project / month, plus resources
Includes preview environments, 30 days of metrics, 10 GB egress and 500,000 ingress requests.
User license€10.00
per user / month
Custom project and environment permissions; Advanced user management adds €9 per user for teams, MFA and SSO.
Ways to pay less
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.
Upsun
- Other savings
First project incentive
The pricing page says the first user license and first project fee, up to $19 a month, are saved automatically, with terms and conditions applying.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Render or Upsun?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Upsun is cheaper to start with: about $10.05 a month, against $25 a month for Render. Render starts at $25 per month plus compute (Pro workspace), and Upsun starts at €9 per project / month plus €10 per user / month, plus resources.
Which has a free plan, Render or Upsun?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Render has a free plan. Upsun does not, though it 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.