Compare providers·Tools

DigitalOcean vs Heroku

Monthly hosting costs for typical app profiles — computed with the same recommendation engine as StackPlan stack reports. Assumes balanced budget and ops preferences unless noted.

Pricing data:DigitalOcean · updated Jul 2026Heroku · updated Jul 2026

Web app

MetricDigitalOceanHeroku
Cost at 1k DAU$36/mo$55/mo
Cost at 100 DAU$21/mo$14/mo
Cost at 1K DAU$36/mo$55/mo
Cost at 10K DAU$40.76/mo$55/mo
Cost at 100K DAU$181.76/mo$64/mo
Services used
  • DigitalOcean · Droplets · Basic 1GB
  • DigitalOcean · Managed Postgres · Basic 2GB RAM
  • Heroku · Dynos · Eco
  • Heroku · Heroku Postgres · Standard-0
Fit score81/10083/100
Verdict: It flips at scale: DigitalOcean cheaper at 1k DAU, Heroku at 100k.

SaaS product

MetricDigitalOceanHeroku
Cost at 1k DAU$36.40/mo$55.40/mo
Cost at 100 DAU$21/mo$14/mo
Cost at 1K DAU$36.40/mo$55.40/mo
Cost at 10K DAU$46.36/mo$60.60/mo
Cost at 100K DAU$241.36/mo$123.60/mo
Services used
  • DigitalOcean · Droplets · Basic 1GB
  • DigitalOcean · Managed Postgres · Basic 2GB RAM
  • Cloudflare · Queues · Paid
  • Cloudflare · Cron Triggers · Free
  • Heroku · Dynos · Eco
  • Heroku · Heroku Postgres · Standard-0
  • Cloudflare · Queues · Paid
  • Heroku · Scheduler · Free add-on
Fit score61/10064/100
Verdict: It flips at scale: DigitalOcean cheaper at 1k DAU, Heroku at 100k.

E-commerce store

MetricDigitalOceanHeroku
Cost at 1k DAU$41/mo$63.73/mo
Cost at 100 DAU$26/mo$14.81/mo
Cost at 1K DAU$41/mo$63.73/mo
Cost at 10K DAU$65.06/mo$142.84/mo
Cost at 100K DAU$516.84/mo$942.85/mo
Services used
  • DigitalOcean · Droplets · Basic 1GB
  • DigitalOcean · Managed Postgres · Basic 2GB RAM
  • DigitalOcean · Spaces · Standard
  • Heroku · Dynos · Eco
  • Heroku · Heroku Postgres · Standard-0
  • Netlify · Blobs · Metered
Fit score81/10065/100
Verdict: Costs trade off by traffic level — compare the table above for your expected scale.

API / backend service

MetricDigitalOceanHeroku
Cost at 1k DAU$36/mo$55/mo
Cost at 100 DAU$21/mo$14/mo
Cost at 1K DAU$36/mo$55/mo
Cost at 10K DAU$40.76/mo$55/mo
Cost at 100K DAU$181.76/mo$64/mo
Services used
  • DigitalOcean · Droplets · Basic 1GB
  • DigitalOcean · Managed Postgres · Basic 2GB RAM
  • Heroku · Dynos · Eco
  • Heroku · Heroku Postgres · Standard-0
Fit score81/10083/100
Verdict: It flips at scale: DigitalOcean cheaper at 1k DAU, Heroku at 100k.

Mobile app backend

MetricDigitalOceanHeroku
Cost at 1k DAU$41/mo$63.73/mo
Cost at 100 DAU$26/mo$14.81/mo
Cost at 1K DAU$41/mo$63.73/mo
Cost at 10K DAU$65.06/mo$142.84/mo
Cost at 100K DAU$516.84/mo$942.85/mo
Services used
  • DigitalOcean · Droplets · Basic 1GB
  • DigitalOcean · Managed Postgres · Basic 2GB RAM
  • DigitalOcean · Spaces · Standard
  • Heroku · Dynos · Eco
  • Heroku · Heroku Postgres · Standard-0
  • Netlify · Blobs · Metered
Fit score81/10065/100
Verdict: Costs trade off by traffic level — compare the table above for your expected scale.

Realtime / collaborative

MetricDigitalOceanHeroku
Cost at 1k DAU$36/mo$55/mo
Cost at 100 DAU$21/mo$14/mo
Cost at 1K DAU$36/mo$55/mo
Cost at 10K DAU$40.76/mo$55/mo
Cost at 100K DAU$181.76/mo$64/mo
Services used
  • DigitalOcean · Droplets · Basic 1GB
  • DigitalOcean · Managed Postgres · Basic 2GB RAM
  • Heroku · Dynos · Eco
  • Heroku · Heroku Postgres · Standard-0
Fit score88/10083/100
Verdict: It flips at scale: DigitalOcean cheaper at 1k DAU, Heroku at 100k.

Jobs & pipelines

MetricDigitalOceanHeroku
Cost at 1k DAU$36.40/mo$55.40/mo
Cost at 100 DAU$21/mo$14/mo
Cost at 1K DAU$36.40/mo$55.40/mo
Cost at 10K DAU$46.36/mo$60.60/mo
Cost at 100K DAU$241.36/mo$123.60/mo
Services used
  • DigitalOcean · Droplets · Basic 1GB
  • DigitalOcean · Managed Postgres · Basic 2GB RAM
  • Cloudflare · Queues · Paid
  • Cloudflare · Cron Triggers · Free
  • Heroku · Dynos · Eco
  • Heroku · Heroku Postgres · Standard-0
  • Cloudflare · Queues · Paid
  • Heroku · Scheduler · Free add-on
Fit score71/10064/100
Verdict: It flips at scale: DigitalOcean cheaper at 1k DAU, Heroku at 100k.

AI app

MetricDigitalOceanHeroku
Cost at 1k DAU$41/mo$63.73/mo
Cost at 100 DAU$26/mo$14.81/mo
Cost at 1K DAU$41/mo$63.73/mo
Cost at 10K DAU$65.06/mo$142.84/mo
Cost at 100K DAU$516.84/mo$942.85/mo
Services used
  • DigitalOcean · Droplets · Basic 1GB
  • DigitalOcean · Managed Postgres · Basic 2GB RAM
  • DigitalOcean · Spaces · Standard
  • Heroku · Dynos · Eco
  • Heroku · Heroku Postgres · Standard-0
  • Netlify · Blobs · Metered
Fit score81/10055/100
Verdict: Costs trade off by traffic level — compare the table above for your expected scale.

Internal tool

MetricDigitalOceanHeroku
Cost at 1k DAU$36/mo$55/mo
Cost at 100 DAU$21/mo$14/mo
Cost at 1K DAU$36/mo$55/mo
Cost at 10K DAU$40.76/mo$55/mo
Cost at 100K DAU$181.76/mo$64/mo
Services used
  • DigitalOcean · Droplets · Basic 1GB
  • DigitalOcean · Managed Postgres · Basic 2GB RAM
  • Heroku · Dynos · Eco
  • Heroku · Heroku Postgres · Standard-0
Fit score81/10083/100
Verdict: It flips at scale: DigitalOcean cheaper at 1k DAU, Heroku at 100k.

These numbers assume a typical profile

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