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Cloud · head to head

CapRover vs Porter

CapRover logo

CapRover

Cloud

Free self-hosted platform built on Docker Swarm with a dashboard and automatic certificates

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Porter logo

Porter

Cloud

Effortless app infrastructure, your own cloud

From
$6/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only CapRover has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: CapRover since June 2026 one pseudonymous account wrote 97 of roughly 100 commits and the next human contributor wrote one, so there is no identifiable person or company to contract with, escalate to or hold responsible.; Porter pricing based on vCPU and memory can be expensive for small projects
  • They diverge on capability: CapRover covers One-click applications, Porter covers Rapid deployment.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CapRover and Porter actually diverge.

Attributes where CapRover and Porter differ
AttributeCapRoverPorter
Starting priceFree$6/month
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feeUnknown
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Linux, Docker, CLI, Self-hostedAWS, GCP, Azure

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

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 CapRover

  • One-click applications
  • Automatic certificates
  • Web dashboard
  • Multiple deploy paths
  • Docker Swarm clustering
  • Custom nginx configuration

Only in Porter

  • Rapid deployment
  • Multi-cloud support
  • Framework agnostic
  • DevOps automation
  • Enterprise compliance
  • Cost optimization

What people use each for

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

CapRover

  • Running a personal server or homelab with several applications behind automatic certificatesnot Porter
  • A two person team that wants a dashboard rather than a terminal for deployments on one boxnot Porter
  • Standing up one-click databases and internal tools without writing Compose filesnot Porter
  • Hosting client demos cheaply where downtime is inconvenient rather than expensivenot Porter

Porter

  • Deploying Next.js applications with serverless backendsnot CapRover
  • Scaling microservices across multiple cloud providersnot CapRover
  • Running applications without dedicated DevOps staffnot CapRover

Where each one falls short

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

CapRover

  • Since June 2026 one pseudonymous account wrote 97 of roughly 100 commits and the next human contributor wrote one, so there is no identifiable person or company to contract with, escalate to or hold responsible.
  • Donations over the last twelve months totalled 285 US dollars and there is no commercial tier, so no paid support exists at any price and no maintenance commitment is funded.
  • The LICENSE file is Apache 2.0 with a superseding appendix that bans redistributing a paid version and refers to paid features that do not yet exist, and GitHub cannot classify it, so the terms already anticipate a commercial change of direction.
  • Releases arrive in bursts with an eleven month gap between September 2023 and August 2024 and two further gaps of about six months since, so there is no basis for assuming a security fix will land promptly.
  • The backup feature is documented as experimental, covers only the CapRover configuration directory and explicitly excludes persistent volumes and container images, so every database has to be dumped separately with its container stopped.

Porter

  • Pricing based on vCPU and memory can be expensive for small projects
  • Vendor lock-in to Porter platform despite multi-cloud support
  • Limited customization for complex infrastructure requirements

Pricing, plan by plan

CapRover

Free
  • CapRoverFree
    • No paid tier and no hosted offering
    • Unlimited applications, servers and users
    • Community support through Slack and GitHub

Porter

$6/month
  • Standard$undefined/usage
    • RAM: $6 per month per GB
    • vCPU: $13 per month per vCPU
    • Unlimited applications
  • Enterprise$undefined/custom
    • Volume discounts available
    • All Standard features
    • Premium support

Which should you pick?

Choose CapRover if

  • You need one-click applications.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Linux, Docker, CLI, Self-hosted.
  • You also want automatic certificates.
CapRover review

Choose Porter if

  • You need rapid deployment.
  • You work on AWS, GCP, Azure.
  • You also want multi-cloud support.
Porter review

Questions people ask

Is CapRover or Porter better?
Neither clearly leads. CapRover starts at Free and Porter at $6/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, CapRover or Porter?
CapRover has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for CapRover and $6/month for Porter.
Does CapRover or Porter run on more platforms?
CapRover runs on Web, Linux, Docker, CLI, Self-hosted. Porter runs on AWS, GCP, Azure.
Can I use CapRover for free?
Yes. CapRover has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Porter starts at $6/month.
What is CapRover best used for?
CapRover is most often used for running a personal server or homelab with several applications behind automatic certificates, a two person team that wants a dashboard rather than a terminal for deployments on one box, standing up one-click databases and internal tools without writing compose files, hosting client demos cheaply where downtime is inconvenient rather than expensive. Of those, running a personal server or homelab with several applications behind automatic certificates and a two person team that wants a dashboard rather than a terminal for deployments on one box are not what Porter is typically brought in for.
What can CapRover do that Porter cannot?
CapRover covers One-click applications, Automatic certificates, Web dashboard, Multiple deploy paths. Porter covers Rapid deployment, Multi-cloud support, Framework agnostic, DevOps automation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

CapRover: Does CapRover cost anything?

No. There is no paid tier and no hosted version. The only income is donations, which came to 285 US dollars over the last twelve months.

Porter: How is Porter priced?

Porter uses pay-as-you-go pricing: $6 per month per GB of RAM and $13 per month per vCPU. You only pay for the resources your applications use, not cloud instance capacity.

Source
CapRover: Is the licence really Apache 2.0?

Not quite. The LICENSE file is Apache 2.0 plus an appendix that supersedes it in case of conflict, forbidding modification of paid features and redistribution of a paid version. GitHub does not recognise the result as a standard licence.

Porter: Does Porter include cloud provider costs?

Porter pricing excludes underlying cloud provider costs (AWS, Azure, GCP), though cloud credits can offset those expenses.

Source
CapRover: Does the backup feature protect my databases?

No. It backs up the CapRover configuration directory only and explicitly excludes persistent directories and container images. You have to dump each database yourself with the container stopped.

Porter: Do startups get special pricing?

Yes, nonprofits receive 50% off standard rates, and startups may qualify for special pricing programs.

Source
CapRover: Can I move off Docker Swarm later?

Not without rebuilding. CapRover is architecturally tied to Swarm, so outgrowing it means migrating applications to a different platform rather than switching a scheduler.

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