# CapRover review (2026): is it any good? > Free, self-hosted platform for deploying apps with Docker Checked Nov 13, 2026 ยท graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA. CapRover is a free, self-hosted platform for deploying and managing apps on a server you control. It builds on Docker, nginx, Let's Encrypt and Docker Swarm, and apps can be deployed from the dashboard, a command-line tool, a webhook or an existing Git workflow. There is no paid edition or hosted service described on its site; funding comes from community donations. - **Category:** Web Hosting - **Made by:** CapRover - **Website:** https://caprover.com - **Runs on:** Web - **Who should skip it:** Skip it if you want a hosted service, as the site lists none. - **Facts last checked:** Nov 13, 2026 ## Pricing As of Nov 13, 2026, CapRover is free to use. - **Pricing model:** Free - **Free plan:** The whole platform is free to install on your own server; the site's headline says "free forever". - **Free trial:** None listed. | Plan | Price | What you get | | --- | --- | --- | | Self-hosted | $0 | Install it yourself on Ubuntu 24.04 with at least 1 GiB of RAM and 5 GiB of free disk. Server costs are yours; the project asks for donations via OpenCollective. | Read from https://caprover.com on Nov 13, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with CapRover before buying. ## Key features - **Apps in any language:** Node.js, Python, PHP, Java, Ruby, .NET or anything that runs in a container can be deployed. - **One-click apps:** Databases, WordPress, monitoring tools and other popular services can be launched from a catalog. - **Automatic HTTPS:** Let's Encrypt certificates are issued and renewed, with a one-click redirect from HTTP to HTTPS. - **Several ways to deploy:** Deploy from the dashboard, the command-line tool, a webhook, or an existing Git workflow. - **App settings in one place:** Ports, persistent directories, environment variables and instance counts are managed from the dashboard. - **Docker Swarm clusters:** Additional nodes can be added to a Docker Swarm cluster, with load balancing handled by CapRover. ## Good for - Developers who want a Heroku-style workflow on their own VPS - Anyone running several small apps on one server - Teams that want no per-seat or per-app platform fees ## Worth knowing - CapRover does not supply servers; you rent and maintain your own, and the docs target a fresh Ubuntu 24.04 install. - Setup needs a domain with wildcard DNS access and public inbound ports 80, 443 and 3000. - Support comes from documentation and a community Slack group; no paid support is listed. - The site lists no hosted version, so updates, backups and security fall to you. ## ToolGPA grades **GPA: 2.0 out of 4**, graded Nov 13, 2026. CapRover is a free app platform you install on your own server, with one-click apps and automatic HTTPS. You rent and maintain the server, and support is documentation and a community Slack. - **Value for money: C.** Free software, but only free if you host it yourself, and you pay for the server. - **Free plan and trial: B.** The whole platform is free to install, with no paid tier. You need your own server. - **Features: C.** Apps in any language, one-click apps, HTTPS, several deploy methods and Docker Swarm clusters. No hosted version, so updates and backups are yours. - **Ease of use: D.** Self-hosting with a fresh Ubuntu server, wildcard DNS and open ports 80, 443 and 3000. - **Platforms and integrations: C.** Web dashboard with one-click apps and no API or apps listed. These are ToolGPA's own grades. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from CapRover's own pages on 13 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. ## Where it stands among web hosts - CapRover's GPA of 2.0 is higher than 49 of the 122 other web hosts we grade, and level with 24. - It stands best on free plan and trial (B, above 99 of 122) and worst on ease of use (D, above 0). - CapRover has no paid plan. - On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 1.7 out of 4. Nothing scores higher for less, though at least one tool matches that score at a lower price. The category's chart of price against score: https://toolgpa.com/charts/web-hosting ## Keep it, or make your own? **Keep it.** CapRover is free, so making your own would save you nothing. - You could not: Databases with views, filters and links between them. - You could not: It plugs into other products, Docker, nginx and Let's Encrypt among them. A judgement by ToolGPA from this listing, by rules that are the same for every tool. Nothing was built to test it. ## Works with Docker, nginx, Let's Encrypt, DigitalOcean, GitHub **Tags:** Self-hostable, Databases ## Alternatives - [Coolify](https://toolgpa.com/tools/coolify): Open-source platform to deploy apps and databases to your own servers. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/caprover-vs-coolify) - [Dokploy](https://toolgpa.com/tools/dokploy): Open-source platform to deploy apps and databases on your own servers. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/caprover-vs-dokploy) - [Dokku](https://toolgpa.com/tools/dokku): Open-source, single-server platform as a service you run yourself. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/caprover-vs-dokku) - [Render](https://toolgpa.com/tools/render): Cloud hosting for web services, databases and workers. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/caprover-vs-render) - [Railway](https://toolgpa.com/tools/railway): App and database hosting billed by the second for usage. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/caprover-vs-railway) ## Sources The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 13, 2026: - https://caprover.com - https://caprover.com/docs/get-started.html Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/caprover Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).