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Alibaba Cloud vs PlanetScale

Alibaba Cloud logo

Alibaba Cloud

Software

Asia's leading cloud computing provider

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
PlanetScale logo

PlanetScale

Software

The MySQL-compatible serverless database

From
$15/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Alibaba Cloud has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Alibaba Cloud technical support is a separate subscription, from $19.99 a month for Developer up to $8,000 a month for Enterprise, with only Basic included; PlanetScale eBS High Availability requires 3-node configuration with replication overhead
  • They diverge on capability: Alibaba Cloud covers Elastic Compute Service, PlanetScale covers Database Branching.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Alibaba Cloud and PlanetScale actually diverge.

Attributes where Alibaba Cloud and PlanetScale differ
AttributeAlibaba CloudPlanetScale
Starting priceFree$15/month
Pricing modelusage-basedsubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsLinux, Windows, Api, CliCloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure)
Founded20092018

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Alibaba Cloud

  • Elastic Compute Service
  • Object Storage Service
  • RDS Database
  • MaxCompute
  • Function Compute
  • CDN
  • Load Balancer
  • API Gateway

Only in PlanetScale

  • Database Branching
  • Non-blocking Schema Changes
  • Insights
  • Horizontal Scaling
  • Connection Pooling
  • Query Caching
  • Automatic Backups
  • Global Replication

Both cover

  • SOC2
  • Cloud deployment

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Alibaba Cloud

  • Cloud compute and storage with a strong footprint in China and Asia Pacificnot PlanetScale
  • Pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitmentnot PlanetScale
  • Committed-use discounts through savings plans for steady workloadsnot PlanetScale
  • CDN and data transfer packages for content deliverynot PlanetScale

PlanetScale

  • MySQL database hosting with automatic failover and replicationnot Alibaba Cloud
  • Vitess-based sharding for horizontal scaling across large datasetsnot Alibaba Cloud
  • Cloud provider flexibility across AWS, GCP, Azure with 60+ regionsnot Alibaba Cloud
  • Cost-effective database clusters using ARM64 architecture optionsnot Alibaba Cloud

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Alibaba Cloud

  • Technical support is a separate subscription, from $19.99 a month for Developer up to $8,000 a month for Enterprise, with only Basic included
  • Service prices are not shown as a rate card and route through a calculator or sales
  • Committed discounts require savings plans, reserved instances or capacity packages rather than being automatic

PlanetScale

  • EBS High Availability requires 3-node configuration with replication overhead
  • EBS Non-HA single-node option lacks redundancy and automatic failover
  • Pricing varies by cloud provider and region, requiring queries for specific rates
  • ARM64 architecture only available on EBS tier, not Metal deployments

Pricing, plan by plan

Alibaba Cloud

Free
  • Free TrialFree
    • Free tier credits
    • ECS instances
    • Cloud storage
  • Pay-as-You-GoFree
    • Flexible billing
    • No commitments
    • Global reach

PlanetScale

$15/month

No published plan breakdown. See the PlanetScale review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Alibaba Cloud if

  • You need elastic compute service.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Api, Cli.
  • You also want object storage service.
Alibaba Cloud review

Choose PlanetScale if

  • You need database branching.
  • You work on Cloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure).
  • You also want non-blocking schema changes.
PlanetScale review

Questions people ask

Is Alibaba Cloud or PlanetScale better?
Neither clearly leads. Alibaba Cloud starts at Free and PlanetScale at $15/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Alibaba Cloud or PlanetScale?
Alibaba Cloud has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Alibaba Cloud and $15/month for PlanetScale.
Does Alibaba Cloud or PlanetScale run on more platforms?
Alibaba Cloud runs on Linux, Windows, Api, Cli. PlanetScale runs on Cloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure).
Can I use Alibaba Cloud for free?
Yes. Alibaba Cloud has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. PlanetScale starts at $15/month.
What is Alibaba Cloud best used for?
Alibaba Cloud is most often used for cloud compute and storage with a strong footprint in china and asia pacific, pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitment, committed-use discounts through savings plans for steady workloads, cdn and data transfer packages for content delivery. Of those, cloud compute and storage with a strong footprint in china and asia pacific and pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitment are not what PlanetScale is typically brought in for.
What can Alibaba Cloud do that PlanetScale cannot?
Alibaba Cloud covers Elastic Compute Service, Object Storage Service, RDS Database, MaxCompute. PlanetScale covers Database Branching, Non-blocking Schema Changes, Insights, Horizontal Scaling. Both handle SOC2, Cloud deployment.
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