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APIs · head to head

Convoy vs Read the Docs

Convoy logo

Convoy

APIs

Open source webhooks gateway you self-host, handling both sending and receiving

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Read the Docs logo

Read the Docs

Documentation

Documentation hosting with versioning built for open source

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Convoy the default deployment is self-hosted, so you operate Convoy plus Postgres and Redis and carry the on-call burden for the system that delivers your customers' events.; Read the Docs build configuration is finicky, and build failures on dependency changes are a common frustration
  • They diverge on capability: Convoy covers Inbound and outbound, Read the Docs covers Build on commit.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Convoy and Read the Docs actually diverge.

Attributes where Convoy and Read the Docs differ
AttributeConvoyRead the Docs
Pricing modelPer month, flat rate regardless of volumeFree for open source; paid business plans for private documentation
PlatformsLinux, Docker, Kubernetes, CloudWeb, Cloud
CategoryAPIsDocumentation

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Convoy

  • Inbound and outbound
  • Broker-driven ingestion
  • Payload transformation
  • Portal links
  • Circuit breaking
  • Retry policies
  • OpenTelemetry export
  • Role-based access control

Only in Read the Docs

  • Build on commit
  • Version by branch and tag
  • Pull request previews
  • Free for open source

What people use each for

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

Convoy

  • A fintech that cannot route customer webhook traffic through a third-party SaaS for compliance reasonsnot Read the Docs
  • A high-volume platform for which per-message webhook pricing costs more than the flat premium licencenot Read the Docs
  • A team that also receives webhooks from many providers and wants ingestion, verification and deduplication in the same gatewaynot Read the Docs
  • An engineering group that wants webhook delivery driven directly from an existing Kafka or SQS topicnot Read the Docs

Read the Docs

  • Open-source projects needing free hosted versioned documentationnot Convoy
  • Teams wanting docs rebuilt automatically on every commitnot Convoy
  • Reviewing documentation changes in a pull request before mergenot Convoy

Where each one falls short

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

Convoy

  • The default deployment is self-hosted, so you operate Convoy plus Postgres and Redis and carry the on-call burden for the system that delivers your customers' events.
  • Frain Technologies is a small startup, and putting customer-facing delivery infrastructure on it means accepting real vendor continuity risk on a component that is hard to swap out quickly.
  • The premium tier at a flat 999 US dollars a month is poor value below substantial volume, while the community edition omits the portal, transformations and RBAC that most production deployments end up wanting.
  • The hosted cloud trial is capped at one project and 100 events a day, which is too small to properly evaluate the service before committing.
  • Documentation and the third-party ecosystem are thinner than the established webhook services, so unusual configurations often mean reading the Go source.

Read the Docs

  • Build configuration is finicky, and build failures on dependency changes are a common frustration
  • Default themes are recognisable and dated, so sites look alike unless customised
  • Private documentation requires a paid business plan
  • Build times on large projects are slow enough to interrupt a review cycle

Pricing, plan by plan

Convoy

Free
  • CommunityFree
    • Self-hosted open source gateway
    • Inbound and outbound webhooks
    • Automatic retries and message broker support
  • Premium$999/month
    • Flat rate irrespective of message volume
    • Portal links and payload transformation
    • RBAC, circuit breaking and white labelling
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • SAML SSO
    • Dedicated support with SLA
    • On-premises deployment assistance
  • Cloud$undefined/month
    • Hosted by Convoy
    • 14 day trial limited to one project and 100 events a day
    • Usage-based tiers above the trial

Read the Docs

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Core functionality
    • Public projects

Which should you pick?

Choose Convoy if

  • You need inbound and outbound.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Cloud.
  • You also want broker-driven ingestion.
Convoy review

Choose Read the Docs if

  • You need build on commit.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Cloud.
  • You also want version by branch and tag.
Read the Docs review

Questions people ask

Is Convoy or Read the Docs better?
Neither clearly leads. Convoy starts at Free and Read the Docs at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Convoy or Read the Docs?
Convoy starts at Free and Read the Docs at Free.
Does Convoy or Read the Docs run on more platforms?
Convoy runs on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Cloud. Read the Docs runs on Web, Cloud.
Can I use Convoy for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Convoy best used for?
Convoy is most often used for a fintech that cannot route customer webhook traffic through a third-party saas for compliance reasons, a high-volume platform for which per-message webhook pricing costs more than the flat premium licence, a team that also receives webhooks from many providers and wants ingestion, verification and deduplication in the same gateway, an engineering group that wants webhook delivery driven directly from an existing kafka or sqs topic. Of those, a fintech that cannot route customer webhook traffic through a third-party saas for compliance reasons and a high-volume platform for which per-message webhook pricing costs more than the flat premium licence are not what Read the Docs is typically brought in for.
What can Convoy do that Read the Docs cannot?
Convoy covers Inbound and outbound, Broker-driven ingestion, Payload transformation, Portal links. Read the Docs covers Build on commit, Version by branch and tag, Pull request previews, Free for open source.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Convoy: Is Convoy really open source?

Yes, the community edition is open source and self-hostable, covering both inbound and outbound webhooks with retries.

Read the Docs: Is Read the Docs free?

Free for open-source public projects. Private documentation requires a paid business plan.

Convoy: What does premium cost?

A flat 999 US dollars a month, self-hosted, regardless of message volume.

Read the Docs: What does it build from?

Most commonly Sphinx or MkDocs sources kept in your repository.

Convoy: Does it receive webhooks as well as send them?

Yes, inbound ingestion with verification and deduplication is a first-class feature, unlike most webhook services.

Read the Docs: How does versioning work?

It maps branches and tags to documentation versions, so several releases are served side by side without manual work.

Convoy: Do I have to self-host?

No, there is a hosted cloud, but the trial is capped at 100 events a day and self-hosting is the primary model.

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