Netlify vs Self-hosted VPS

Side-by-side cost comparison — enter your workload and see which platform is cheaper for your traffic.

1. Pick a workload

Choose the preset closest to your project size.

2. Fine-tune (optional)

Override the preset values with your real numbers.

Self-hosted VPS is cheaper by $35.00/mo (70%) for this workload. Switch presets or adjust the numbers above to see how the gap changes at different scales.

NetlifyPro

$50.00/mo
Pro plan (3,000 credits)
Base subscription — unlimited members
$20.00
Bandwidth
214.6 GB × 20 = 4292 credits
$0.00
CDN Requests
790k × 2/10k = 1580 credits
$0.00
Functions Compute
22.2 GB-hrs × 10 = 222 credits
$0.00
Production Deploys
40 × 15 = 600 credits
$0.00
Credit overage (3 × 1,500 credits @ $10)
3694 credits over 3,000 → 3 packs × $10
$30.00
Total credits: 6694 / 3,000 included. 3694 overage → 3 packs × $10 = $30. Forms, Netlify Identity, background functions, AI inference, and split testing consume additional credits.
Rates verified 2026-05 — Netlify pricing page

Self-hosted VPSVPS

Lower cost
$15.00/mo
VPS — medium (2 dedicated vCPU, 8 GB RAM)
App server + cache + background workers
$15.00
Cloudflare CDN + R2
Free tier handles most workloads
incl.
Database — add-on
Optional: managed DB ~$25/mo for managed Postgres, Auth, Storage (+$25/mo if needed)
incl.
Add a managed database (+$25/mo) for Postgres, Auth, Storage, and Realtime. Or run Postgres on the same VPS for free. You take on patching, monitoring, and backups — budget ~2–4 hours/month. Add ~$5–15/mo for managed monitoring (Better Stack, Sentry) and email (Resend) if you want them off your plate.
Rates verified 2026-05 — Self-hosted VPS pricing page

What Netlify excels at

  • Credit-based pricing is predictable for low-to-medium traffic — no surprise per-request bills.
  • Built-in form handling, identity, A/B split testing, and branch deploys.
  • Large plugin ecosystem for build-time customizations.
  • Strong CI/CD with granular deploy contexts (production, branch, PR previews).
  • Unlimited team members on Pro — no per-seat charge.

What Self-hosted VPS excels at

  • Lowest cost per unit of compute — a $15/mo VPS outperforms a $85/mo Render Pro instance on raw CPU.
  • No per-request, per-invocation, or egress charges — traffic spikes are free.
  • Full control: custom runtimes, native cron, WebSockets, long-running processes, any Node.js version.
  • Run your database, cache, and app on one server — no inter-service network latency or egress costs.
  • No vendor lock-in — switch providers with a single rsync + DNS change.
Compatible

MakerKit deploys to Netlify and Self-hosted VPS

Next.js 16 App Router with Dockerfile included — deploy to your preferred hosting platform without touching config.

Get MakerkitOne-time $349 — yours forever

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